Alef Aeronautics
- A SpaceX-backed startup’s electric flying became the first to get approval for flight tests.
- Alef Aeronautics is already taking pre-orders for the car that will start at $300,000.
- Alef CEO Jim Dukhovny previously told CNBC he expected the car to be available in 2025.
A fully electric flying car that’ll cost about $300,000 just won approval to start testing on the road – and in the air.
Alef Aeronautics, a Californian automaker, said in a press release it had received a Special Airworthiness Certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for the Model A.
It’s the first such approval for a flight-capable car, according to the startup, which has been backed by the likes of SpaceX.
Alef CEO Jim Dukhovny said: “It allows us to move closer to bringing people an environmentally friendly and faster commute, saving individuals and companies hours each week. This is one small step for planes, one giant step for cars.”
Due to evolving FAA restrictions tied to the unprecedented capabilities of flying cars, Alef said its certification limits the locations and purpose for which it is permitted to fly.
The company aimed to produce the first flying car with both street driving and vertical take-off capabilities. It’s designed to fit within existing urban infrastructure for driving and parking.
The flying car is able to take off vertically or horizontally, and can carry up to two people. It’s expected to have a road range of 200 miles and a flying range of 110 miles.
Buyers can pay a $150 deposit to join the general queue, or $1,500 to get priority access when deliveries start.
About 440 people paid deposits in the final three months of 2022, Alef said in January.
In December, Dukhovny told CNBC Make It that customers could expect to see their cars in the sky by 2025.
Alef wasn’t the only flying car and air taxi company to make a major regulatory breakthrough in recent days.
On Wednesday, shares in flying taxi comapny Joby Aviation soared 44% after it also received a Special Airworthiness Certificate from the FAA.
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