Is it possible to see a car racing competition done in the sky instead of the street circuits? An innovative company from Australia is proving the doubters wrong as they develop a groundbreaking racecar design that is fit for the future of sports.
Australia, also known as the ‘Land of Plenty’ is famous for many things – Vegemite, Bondi Beach, and the late great Steve Irwin. However, it is also trying its hand on the industry of flying cars with the assistance from the company, Alauda Aeronautics.
According to Pearson, “Racing will push the technology like nothing else. It is not enough to build the speeder: we have to build the sport. We want to bring the excitement and values of Formula 1 to the sky.”
Alauda Aeronautics is a bold aeronautical startup company that focuses on creating manned flying vehicles. Headed by Matt Pearson, the small team of the Australian startup has one bold idea in mind, and that is to witness an aerial car racing sports competition.
For the last two years, the team was able to complete the flying racecar prototype called Airspeeder Mark 1. According to some critics, the prototype is a ‘Ferrari of the Sky’ because it looks like a 1950s-era Formula 1 car that has four powerful propellers.
Things to Know About the Flying Racecar Prototype
The whole team that is working on the Airspeeder Mark 1 has extensive experiences with drones. They started with just a small piece of an unmanned aerial vehicle in order to create the flight control of the prototype. From there, they moved to a much bigger system and started placing the motors of their final speeder.
Each propeller with a size of 1.3 meters have been combined with a 50-kilowatt brushless motor, providing a spin of 3000 rpm and produces about 65 kilos of thrust. These innovative combinations could make some interesting things in the air like flying at top speeds of over 200 kilometers per hour.
The Airspeeder Mark 1 is also measuring its safety procedures because it has a collision detector system and is designed to have airbags in case of an emergency.
What to Expect?
Alauda Aeronautics is currently working with the regulatory authorities in order to confirm their flying racecar design and competition event.
The team is also planning to start a test flight racing in July 2018, where two of their prototypes will battle it out on an Australian desert. Moreover, by the year 2020, Pearson aims to organize the first-ever Airspeeder World Championship.
The concept of Airspeeder World Championship could be associated with the well-known air racing competition, Red Bull Air Race World Championship, which was established by the Red Bull GmbH. The renowned air racing competition started in 2003 and from there, it grew popularity, enticing pilots from different countries to join and compete. The Red Bull Air Race World Championship uses high-performing aerobatic planes, while Airspeeder World Championship is developing their very own drone-like flying racecars.
In order for all of this to happen, Alauda Aeronautics needs to have sponsorships. That is why they launched a Kickstarter campaign for them to receive funds for the futuristic sports racing event.
Pearson said, “We have the prototype, we have the technology, we have the team – now we want to take it to the next level. Our Kickstarter will help us build a community and bring flying racing cars one step closer to reality.”
A similar bold drone idea that is quickly becoming a global phenomenon is the Drone Racing League, the very first drone racing series that uses the first-person-view technology with the physical aspects of a drone. And just like the DRL, Alauda Aeronautics’ plan calls for the first flying racecar competition.
The Australian startup company still has a long way to go before reaching its goal of a Star Wars-like flying racecar event. However, once they get a go signal for their project, the supposedly weird concept will surely become a big hit in the history of sports racing.
