THE full prototype of Malaysia’s flying car will be different from the scale model revealed at the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition (LIMA) three months ago, Entrepreneur Development Minister Mohd Redzuan Yusof said.
The scale model became something of a joke on social media by Malaysians who poked fun at the big motors attached to the car, which some described as being more of a drone rather than an actual flying car.
Redzuan said it would be up to the public to judge the design when the prototype is launched before the end of the year.
“It will be different from what we saw at LIMA but the same kind of aerodynamic technology will be used,” he said in an interview with The Malaysian Insight.
“You can’t run away using rotor blades, engines or what some might call the KDK fan blade,” he said, referring to the joke by social media users who asked if the scale model was made from fans produced by the brand.
Redzuan said the prototype is almost complete and is at the stage where the upper part of the car body is being assembled.
The prototype is being developed by Aerodyne Group, which introduced the scale model called “Vector” at LIMA in May.
Started in 2014, Aerodyne is a company that focuses on drone hardware and has offices around the world. It is also ranked seventh internationally by Drone Industry Insights.
The company previously said the “flying car” was not literally as the term implied, but is a drone-concept vehicle to transport passengers, cargo and for surveillance.
Redzuan dismissed the ridicule from some public comments against the project since it was announced last year, saying it showed the “mentality” of the critics.
“It’s more motivation to prove them (critics) wrong.
“When I said we should build a flying car, 50% of the people laughed at me. This just shows their mentality,” he said.
He said the project was meant to open up business opportunities for entrepreneurs to show their capabilities in the aircraft mobility industry.
He reiterated that Putrajaya would not spend a single sen on the private sector project that is worth half a million ringgit.
Redzuan said he believes the “flying car” will have potential as a mode of transportation in Sarawak, where the road infrastructure is lacking in interior locations.
“Sarawak is a huge state and, to connect, you need roads and bridges.
“If you have a flying vehicle, you don’t need bridges and roads, and you can save costs,” he said.
Before flying cars can be used for such purposes, Redzuan said, laws had to be amended. His ministry is in the middle of studying this with the relevant authorities.
“If we don’t create the legal room for this to operate, we’ll lose our local company that will go abroad because we didn’t amend our laws.
“Even the Middle East is more prepared for this than us,” he said.
In Kuwait, Kuwait Airways Corp recently signed a deal with Dutch company Personal Air Land Vehicle for a two-seater flying car that will go on sale in 2021. – August 24, 2019.
History, propaganda are no bedfellows
Penang Institute wants to draw locals back to lit fest
Honouring the spirit of Malaysia 1963
Umno bukan lagi pemain politik negara, kata penganalisis
Comments
Posted 6 years ago by James Wong · Reply
Posted 6 years ago by Arul Inthirarajah · Reply
Posted 6 years ago by Yoon Kok · Reply
Posted 6 years ago by . . · Reply
Posted 6 years ago by Rupert Lum · Reply
Posted 6 years ago by Kampung Boy · Reply