The Hoverbike

Australian Chris Malloy and his team claim to have invented an actual, working hoverbike that rides like a motorcycle, including handlebar based speed, direction control, custom carbon fiber propellers, frame, drive shafts, and seat. The Hoverbike uses a set of front and back ducted propellers powered by a 1,170 cubic centimeter 4-stroke engine. Not only can it reach speeds of up to ~173 mph (150 knots) but also altitudes of up to 10,000 feet.

Chris thinks his hoverbike could replace such aircraft in fields like search and rescue, aerial surveying, firefighting, moviemaking, and power line inspection.

The hoverbike prototype’s 1100cc engine is a flat twin four-stroke with one camshaft, four valves per cylinder, and a central balancer shaft. Its two propellers are made of Tasmanian Oak with a carbon fiber leading edge, according to the hoverbike website’s spec sheet.

The hoverbike weighs about 240 pounds. It’s almost ten feet long by a bit over four feet wide. The aircraft takes regular unleaded and burns up about eight gallons of fuel per hour in flight, according to the site. That means it gets pretty good mileage, about 21.8 miles-per-gallon, and the bike can travel 92 miles on a single tank of gas.

According to the website, the team has completed the first stage of testing with a series of tethered flights, succeeding at maintaining a controlled hover and maneuvering the vehicle within the hover.

Chris and his team are trying to raise up to $1.1 million (Australian dollars) to finish the last stages of their project.