INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image copyrightAston MartinLuxury carmaker Aston Martin has unveiled plans for a personal aircraft dubbed a "sports car for the skies".The
company has teamed up with jet engine maker Rolls-Royce and engineering boffins at Cranfield University on the futuristic project.A concept
aircraft was unveiled at the Farnborough Airshow, but the consortium hopes to have a flying version ready for the next show in two years.The
three-seat hybrid-electric vehicle will be vertical take-off and landing.Aston Martin, so associated with James Bond, dismissed suggestions
it was a gimmick more likely to appear in 007 films than be seen flying commercially.Rolls-Royce to develop flying taxiMay boosts aerospace
amid Brexit fears"Personalised and electric air transport is a fast-developing area and we need to start getting into it," said James
Stephens, the company's director of global government.A number of aviation and technology firms are hoping to make electric-powered small
aircraft and air-taxis a reality, including Airbus, ride-sharing firm Uber, and a Google-backed firm called Kitty Hawk
Earlier this week, Rolls-Royce announced plans to develop a flying taxi engine, although the project with Aston Martin is separate.Mr
Stephens said Aston Martin wants to corner the market in next-generation luxury flying vehicles for the rich and famous
The aircraft would, he said, "be a sports car for the skies".But it won't come cheap
"The challenge is time, money and regulation
But the market will be there eventually."Called the Volante Vision Concept, the aircraft will feature autonomous technology and be able to
hit speeds of up to 200mph
Carl Bourne, Rolls-Royce's strategy and business development head, said the consortium rejected plans to build a flying car
"You'd end up with a bad aircraft, and a bad car."He said the Volante would be pitched as an alternative way to escape urban congestion and
quickly move between big towns and cities
"Unlike a private plane, it will be vertical lift
Unlike a helicopter, it will cruise more efficiently," he said.The consortium behind the Volante also includes aviation technology company
Cranfield Aerospace Solutions.It chief executive, Paul Hutton, said: "The introduction of autonomous and electric propulsion technologies
into new aircraft designs is both inevitable and challenging."But he said such projects put the UK consortium "at the vanguard of this
revolution in aerospace".
