SkyCar Expedition

The Parajet Skycar is the first, two seater, high performance, road legal, bio-fuelled flying car; capable of providing rally car performance on and off road, and light aircraft performance after just a few minutes of wing preparation. The seemingly impossible task of building a practical flying car has been attempted by many, but still nothing is available on the market. This is now feasible for the first time in aviation history; due to rapid advancements in flexible wing technology, thanks to wing designer Mike Campbell Jones of Paramania Powergliders. After safety checks and just three minutes of wing preparation the car can take-off from a field or airstrip in less than 400 metres. The Parajet Skycar is easier and safer to fly than any other aircraft, as it has no pitch control and therefore impossible to stall or dive.

SkyCar Expedition

The Skycar's first Flights from the SkySchool HQ in Spain

The SkyCar Expedition Team set off from London on 14th January and after crossing France they headed to the SkySchool HQ at Aerodromo Ordis in north east Spain. On Thursday 22nd January 2009 at 8.30pm Neil Laughton, the SkyCar Expedition Team leader, completed the first successful flight up to 1000ft under the direction of SkySchool MD Alex Ledger. The SkyCar required the full 350m runway in order to launch and lost a little bit of height as it went off the end of the runway however Neil followed Alex's radio commands to keep the SkyCar into wind and proceeded to climb out over the Torremirona Golf Course much to the annoyance of the local inhabitants! Neil flew the SkyCar around Aerodromo Ordis for the next 25 minutes with an average airspeed of around 75kph, which is very fast for a Ram Air canopy.

After a few practise approaches Neil carried out a text book landing back at the airfield. This was promptly celebrated by all involved with a magnum of Mumm Champagne. The SkyCar had two more flights, logging a total of 60 minutes flying time, with the final flight being filmed from the air by Alex Ledger in a Quicksilver microlight flown by Joan Casals, the owner of Aerodromo Ordis. This was an enormous achievement for all involved, in particular Neil Laughton and Giles Cardozo, the SkyCar's designer. SkySchool would like to congratulate the entire SkyCar Expedition Team on successfully completing the expedition to Tombouctou, proving the concept of a Flying Car and opening up an exciting new world in recreational aviation and ram air technology. Follow the link to read Alex Ledger's article about the SkyCar in AV8 Magazine and for further information visit: http://www.skycarexpedition.com/news.php