By Stacy Liberatore For Dailymail.com 21:28 15 Mar 2023, updated 22:51 15 Mar 2023
A Miami-based aerospace company announced its flying car will be taking to the skies in two years – but it could cost you as much as $350,000.
Doron Merdinger, CEO of Doroni Aerospace, told TMZ that his company is testing a two-seat vehicle designed to look like a hovering drone and expects delivery no later than 2025.
Merdinger likened the Doroni H1 to a flying “roadster” designed for short trips that can launch people several hundred feet into the air at speeds of up to 220 km/h.
The company recently performed the first untethered flight on its prototype, but the successful endeavor means a full-size flight model will be ready within the next few months.
The H1 is scheduled to be certified as a Light Sport Aircraft by the Federal Aviation Administration, meaning all you need is a driver’s license and 20 hours of training.
The Doroni H1 should be delivered to consumers by early 2025 at the latest. The two-seat flying car will cost up to $350,000
‘We expect to start selling and renting 22 units in our third year and 722 units in our fifth year. We expect the Doroni H1 eVTOL to generate revenue beginning with first responders, law enforcement, armed forces, a letter of intent to pre-order from a security company and recreational users,” the company said in a statement.
“From there, we plan to position ourselves to potentially be acquired by global defense companies, automakers like General Motors, or ride-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft.”
The flying car has two sets of wings with large ducted fans, a 500-pound payload, and wheels that the company says make it look like a hovering drone.
The Doroni H1 has three axis movements – pitch, roll and yaw.
The H1 is said to have a range of 60 miles and can be charged in a garage.
Merdinger said the battery charges from 20 to 80 percent in about 20 minutes.
“We designed, built, tested and successfully took off a 643-pound full-size prototype, the X8 prototype eVTOL,” the company said.
Doroni previously estimated the initial retail price at $195,000, but Merdinger told TMZ the figure has increased due to rising material costs.
The company has raised more than $2.7 million from over 1,550 investors on equity crowdfunding platform StartEngine.com.
The company recently performed the first untethered flight on its prototype, but the successful endeavor means a full-size flight model will be ready within the next few months. The H1 is scheduled to be certified by the Federal Aviation Administration as a light sport aircraft, meaning all you need is a license and 20 hours of training
The company has exhausted its first raise on the platform, receiving over 230 pre-order requests for launch aircraft.
While the US-based company is designing a personal vehicle for rural areas, Chinese firm XPeng is building a model to fly tourists around cities.
The company claims it can reach speeds of up to 80 miles per hour in just a few years.
The all-electric XPeng X2 is expected to stay at an altitude of about 300 feet — roughly the same height as Big Ben.
It will cost the same as a luxury car like a Bentley or Rolls Royce and will be on the market by 2025.
Doroni previously estimated the initial retail price at $195,000, but Merdinger told TMZ the figure has increased due to rising material costs. While the US-based company is designing a personal vehicle for rural areas, Chinese firm XPeng is building a model to fly tourists around cities
Brian Gu, President and Vice-Chairman, said the ultimate goal is for wealthy individuals to use it as their daily mode of transportation.
However, with several regulatory hurdles still to be cleared, he said the vehicle would likely be contained in the “outskirts of cities or on scenic strips” first.
Owners are expected to only need a driver’s license as the first flights will likely need to be autonomous
