Video: FAA certifies missionary's Subaru-powered flying car

Missionary Steve Saint and his FAA Certified Flying Car – Click above to watch video after the jump

Some folks don't have the time to sit around and wait for Terrafugia to produce a flying car. Steve Saint is a missionary and the head of I-TEC, a non-profit company that provides technology and training to the indigenous Waodani Indians of Ecuador. He needed a way to get in and out of remote Amazon areas, and a flying car would certainly do the job. Saint decided to build one himself, and it just received FAA Certification.

The car, called Maverick, is a buggy of sorts that is powered by a 250-horsepower Subaru engine. The car is light, so that's enough power to propel it from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 3.9 seconds. When Saint wants to take to the air, he raises a 25 foot mast that locks a parachute in place, then he flips one switch, which connects the engine to the large propeller at the rear of the vehicle. The Maverick is now ready to soar through the sky.

Saint may use the Maverick to assist the Waodani tribe, but he insists that there are many other uses for flying cars, and that they could prove to be a useful tool for a wide range of commercial applications. I-TEC believes it can built around 100 cars per year and that they should cost around $80,000.

Engage your mast and parachute to fly over the jump and check out the Maverick in action.

[Source: CNN]

The video meant to be presented here is no longer available. Sorry for the inconvenience.

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