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The flying car remains among those technologies that has always remained about ten years away. 。
Or maybe just a year, if you believe the CEO of Airbus. 。
"One hundred years ago, urban transport went underground, now we have the technological wherewithal to go above ground," said Tom Enders, the chief executive of aerospace company Airbus, best known for making jet airliners. 。
Enders was speaking at the DLD tech conference in Munich on Monday, where he teased that his company foresees having a working prototype for an autonomous flying car by the end of 2017. 。
"We are in an experimentation phase, we take this development very seriously," he said, according to a report from Reuters.。
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Airbus announced its self-driving flying car plans in September 2016, calling it "Project Vahana." 。
The concept centers on small crafts that can take off and land vertically like a helicopter, but take advantage of the efficiency of winged airplanes while in flight. 。
"The aircraft we’re building doesn’t need a runway, is self-piloted, and can automatically detect and avoid obstacles and other aircraft," wrote Rodin Lyasoff, CEO of Airbus's advanced projects group. "Designed to carry a single passenger or cargo, we’re aiming to make it the first certified passenger aircraft without a pilot. 。
While Airbus is planning on having a prototype this year, it forecasts that it won't have a model ready for public demonstration until 2020. 。
Airbus isn't the only company exploring the idea of autonomous passenger aircraft. Uber released a white paper in October 2016 detailing its own analysis of the concepts, many of which center around the same vertical take/off landing technologies. 。
Google co-founder Larry Page is also reportedly working on a flying car concept through his startup Zee.Aero. 。