Flying Cars, Japan Forging Ahead

Japan is Placing Importance on Being a Leader in the Flying Car Industry

flying cars

The Sky Will Not be the Limit for Japan’s Flying Cars

Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga has announced the government will be launching a public-private council this year aimed at bringing in other private companies outside of the automobile industry to help outline a future for the flying car industry in Japan.

Taking part in the council, the Japan Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry as well as the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism will be attempting to work out the logistics of a road map for these flying cars as well as how they can be used to ease urban traffic, which has been a growing problem within Tokyo.

Secretary Suga also hope that pushing forward the flying car industry will help mitigate loss of life in future natural disasters as well as cope with Japan’s mountainous terrain.

Private Organisations will Play a Pivotal Role in the Success of This Council

Currently leading Japan into a future of air-based transportation is The Cartivator Project, a Tokyo based non-profit made up of a group of volunteers working in the auto and aviation industries.

Ryutaro Mori, Cartivator’s business director, has big hopes for their SkyDrive concept design and aims to have it transport the torch bearer for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics on the final stretch.

Japan hopes to lead the flying car industry out of the realm of science fiction and into our everyday lives within the next couple of decades.

The SkyDrive is based off of drone technology, using a set of 4 rotors allowing it to take off and land vertically. First of it’s kind, if realized, it will be able to fly at a maximum speed of 62mph in the air and significantly cut down travel times by skipping over the traffic infrastructure completely.

Working on the Cartivator Project is a team of 30 volunteers from a diverse range of professional backgrounds. The world looks forward to seeing their remote-piloted prototype set to run test flights in late 2018.

Rules and Regulations Must be Set in Place

While technological advancements have slowly gained momentum, safety standards and regulations have yet to be cemented into a working model. This new form of transportation will require a completely new system for licensing as well as new laws governing every aspect of its use. Secretary Suga’s council will not only be charged with creating road maps, but they are set to take a serious look at laws already in place governing flying vehicles and create a system from these existing laws that can be enacted once personal flying cars become available to the public.

Joining the hands of the private sector with the public sector, Japan hopes to lead the flying car industry out of the realm of science fiction and into our everyday lives within the next couple of decades. For the past one hundred years that man has been able to fly, we have dreamed of a future where we zip across the sky commuting with ease. The coming 2020 Olympics will, at long last, be a real glimpse of that future for us all.

Today’s “otsumami” – a bite size snack:

The world has dreamed of it, Japan is building it.

What do you think?

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