Suzuki could launch a FLYING CAR by 2025 after joining forces with Japanese startup SkyDrive
- Suzuki has announced that it's joining forces with flying car firm SkyDrive
- Together, they will develop an electric, vertical takeoff and landing aircraft
- SkyDrive has previously revealed plans to launch a flying taxi service by 2025
It's best known for its cars and motorcycles, but Suzuki is looking further afield for its next vehicles - all the way to the skies.
Suzuki has announced that it's joining forces with flying car firm SkyDrive to develop an electric, vertical takeoff and landing aircraft.
And there's not long to wait to see it in action, with possible plans to launch the car as part of a flying taxi service in Osaka by 2025.
Suzuki has announced that it's joining forces with flying car firm SkyDrive to develop an electric, vertical takeoff and landing aircraft
For Suzuki, the partnership will add 'flying cars' as a fourth mobility business, in addition to automobiles, motorcycles and outboard motors, a joint statement said.
SkyDrive is currently engaged in the development of a compact, two-seater electric-powered flying car with plans for full-scale production.
The statement did not say whether Suzuki would be working on this specific vehicle.
The company, which is also developing cargo drones, aims to launch a 'flying car' service in Osaka in 2025 when the Japanese city hosts the World Expo.
Skydrive carried out a successful test flight of a 'flying car' with a test pilot on board back in 2020
In a video, SkyDrive's car hovered in mid-air with a passenger inside for four minutes
In their joint statement, the two companies said they will also work to open up new markets with an initial focus on India, where Suzuki has a roughly half share of the auto market.
Suzuki plans to invest 104.4 billion rupees ($1.37 billion) in its India factory to produce electric vehicles and batteries.
Skydrive carried out a successful test flight of a 'flying car' with a test pilot on board back in 2020.
In a video, SkyDrive's car hovered in mid-air with a passenger inside for four minutes.
Tomohiro Fukuzawa, the head of SkyDrive, said: 'Of the world's more than 100 flying car projects, only a handful has succeeded with a person on board.
'I hope many people will want to ride it and feel safe.'
Suzuki and Skydrive will face stiff competition from a range of big names, each with its own science fiction-inspired vision for creating a new form of urban transport that is a cross between a driverless electric car and a short-hop, vertical takeoff-and-landing aircraft.
These include aerospace giant Airbus; Kitty Hawk, a company backed by Google co-founder Larry Page; and Uber, which is working with partners on its own flying taxi strategy.
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