The idea of a flying car seems crazy. The Jetsons had one in a 1960s cartoon. Then again, they also had a talking robot for a housekeeper! It turns out, though, that flying cars are real. A company called Terrafugia has made a car-plane. It's called the Transition. The company says the vehicle will go on sale by the end of 2011.
The car-plane has wings that unfold for flying. They fold back up for driving. (The change takes one minute.) This switch can't take place on a road or in a driveway. Why not? Like every other plane, the Transition needs a runway to take off and land.
Terrafugia is selling the Transition to private pilots. The company says the vehicle is a convenient and cheaper way to fly. There's no need for other transportation to and from airports. You drive the car to the airport and take off. When you land, you fold up the wings and drive away. You don't have to pay to store the aircraft. You can park it in the garage at home.
Buyers of the Transition will likely want to know more about the car-plane. When the Transition acts as a car, it can go about 30 miles on each gallon (13 kilometers on each liter) of gas. That's about the same as a small car. It can carry up to 1,430 pounds (649 kilograms). The aircraft flies mostly under 10,000 feet (3,048 meters). That's about 25,000 feet (7,620 meters) below large passenger jets. The company says this makes the vehicle safer. Why? The aircraft can fly below storms. Other small planes must fly through storm clouds.
The Transition is being marketed more as a plane that drives than as a car that flies, although it is both. Terrafugia is working with the U.S. government to make sure that the vehicle is safe in the sky and on the road. In 2010, the car-plane was categorized a Light Sport Aircraft. This will allow pilots with different levels of experience to fly the Transition.
Once the Transition meets government safety rules, it will be sold to the public. The starting price will be $194,000. Buyers who want other options, like a radio, will have to pay more. People can also pay extra for a parachute.
Can you really expect to see this flying car in the sky? Terrafugia says you can. As of July 2010, the company had taken more than 70 orders for the Transition.
Information for this story came from AP.
QUESTION 1
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There are two circles overlapping each other in a Venn diagram. Above the circles, the text says How Are These Alike and Different? The circle on the left is labeled Passenger Jets. and has a blank line in it. Below the blank line the text says Can fly at 35,000 feet. The circle on the right is labeled Car-Plane. The text inside the circle says Flies mostly under 10,000 feet. and Can fly below storms. The shared space in the middle says Need a runway to take off and land.
Based on the article, which fits best on the blank line above?
Usually have a parachute option available
Can switch from planes to cars
Needs other transportation to get to the airport
Can park for free in home garages