The Terrafugia Transition is pictured at at the New York auto show in April 2012. Photo credit: BLOOMBERG
Terrafugia, a U.S. flying-car developer owned by Chinese automaker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, has begun taking orders for its first product.
Deliveries of the Transition, a two-seat aircraft that can switch between driving and flying modes in less than one minute, are to begin in 2019, Terrafugia said.
Initially the Transition will be sold only in the U.S. The company has yet to disclose pricing.
The Transition, with foldable wings, flies at 100 mph powered by a four-cylinder turbocharged gasoline engine. It is powered by a hybrid-electric powertrain when on the ground.
Terrafugia plans to display the concept of its second product capable of vertical takeoff and landing this month and has said this model will reach market by 2025.
Terrafugia, headquartered in Woburn, Mass., was founded in 2006 by a group of Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduates. It was acquired by Geely last year.
Terrafugia’s Transition will go on sale next yéar in the U.S.
Terrafugia is one of several companies pursuing flying-car technology. At the Geneva auto show in March, Audi and Airbus demonstrated a mobility concept based on an ultralight, two-seater passenger cabin that can be attached to a car or a drone. Volocopter, a German startup backed by Intel and Daimler, has also built a dronelike electric helicopter to ferry travelers across city skies. The company is seeking to offer its first commercial trips in the next three to five years.
Automotive News Europe contributed to this report.