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Terrafugia Transition

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Transition
Proof of Concept during SciFoo 2008 at Google's headquarters
Role Light-sport aircraft
Manufacturer Terrafugia
First flight March 5, 2009[1]
Introduction In development since 2006, prototype unveiled in 2009
Number built 3[2]

The Terrafugia Transition is a light sport, roadable aircraft under development by Terrafugia since 2006.[3]

The Rotax 912ULS[4] piston engine powered, carbon-fiber vehicle is planned to have a flight range of 425 nmi (489 mi; 787 km) using automotive grade unleaded gasoline and a cruising flight speed of 107 mph (93 kn; 172 km/h). It does not include an autopilot.

On the highway, it can drive up to 65 miles per hour (105 km/h)[5] to keep up with traffic. The Transition Proof of Concept's folded dimensions of 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) high, 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) wide and 19 ft 6 in (5.94 m) long are designed to fit within a standard household garage. When operated as a car, the engine powers the rear wheel drive. In flight, the engine drives a pusher propeller. The Transition has folding wings, pusher propeller and twin tail.

Milestones

The experimental Transition Proof of Concept's first flight in March, 2009 was successful and took place under FAA supervision at Plattsburgh International Airport in upstate New York using U.S. Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) tail number N302TF. First customer delivery, as of March 2009, was planned for 2011.[1][6][7]

On July 1, 2010 it was announced that the Terrafugia Transition had been granted an exemption from the FAA concerning its Maximum Takeoff Weight (MTOW) allowing the Transition to be certified with a take-off weight up to 1,430 pounds (650 kg); the limit matches the MTOW for amphibious light-sport aircraft.[8] The extra 110 pounds (50 kg) granted by the exemption provides more weight allowance for the mandatory road safety features such as airbags and bumpers.[8][9]

Terrafugia Transtion Production Prototype on display at Oshkosh July 2011

The proposed design of the production version was made public at AirVenture Oshkosh on 26 July, 2010[10] and no longer included a canard because it was found to have an adverse aerodynamic interaction with the front wheel suspension struts; furthermore, the multipurpose passenger vehicle classification from the NHTSA removed the requirement for a full width bumper that had inspired the original canard design.[11]

On November 16, 2010 the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published Terrafugia's July 20, 2010 petition for a temporary, three-year hardship exemption from four FMVSS standards in the Transition.[12][13] The requests are:

  • To use lighter weight but equally safe motorcycle tires instead of RV tires. (FMVSS No. 110, S4.1 and S4.4)
  • To not include an electronic stability control system because of its weight and potential to become a single point of failure that might unintentionally throttle back the engine in flight. (FMVSS No. 126)
  • To use lighter and stronger, but less scratch resistant, polycarbonate for the windshield and side windows in place of glass to more safely withstand bird strikes. (FMVSS No. 205, S5)
  • To use basic airbags instead of advanced, dual stage airbags because of a lack of financial resources to develop an advanced air bag system. (FMVSS No. 208, S14 except S14.5.1(a))

The NHTSA granted all of the requested exemptions on June 29, 2011, but limited the stability control and airbag exemptions to one year instead of three as originally requested.[14][15] Also in June, 2011, a delay was announced pushing initial customer deliveries to "late 2012".[16] December, 2011 saw the base price increased to US$279,000.[17]

On March 1, 2012, Terrafugia announced that the production prototype would make its auto show debut at the 2012 New York International Auto Show in April, 2012.[18] After undergoing drive tests and high-speed taxi tests, the Production Prototype completed its first flight on March 23, 2012 at Plattsburgh, New York.[19][20][13]

Specifications

Transition Proof of Concept with wings folded at Oshkosh 2008

Data from Terrafugia Transition Proof of Concept specifications[5][21][22]. Terrafugia Transition 2010 specifications.[23]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 1 pilot
  • Capacity: 2, pilot and passengerCockpit width: 48 in (1.2 m) at the shoulder
  • Fuel capacity: 23 US gal (87 L; 19 imp gal), 141 pounds (64 kg)
  • Length on road: 18 ft 9 in (5.72 m) with elevator up
  • Width on road: 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) with wings folded
  • Height on road: 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
  • Rear wheel drive on road

Performance

  • Maximum speed on road: 65 mph (105 km/h)
  • Fuel economy in cruise flight: 5 US gal (19 L) per hour, 21.4 mpg‑US (11.0 L/100 km; 25.7 mpg‑imp)
  • Fuel economy on road: 35 mpg‑US (6.7 L/100 km; 42 mpg‑imp)
  • Certifications: Both FAA and FMVSS certifications planned

Avionics
Glass panel; the proof-of-concept airplane included:[24][25]

  • Dynon Avionics EFIS-D100 Electronic Flight Information System with HS34 Nav and GPS Connectivity
  • Dynon Avionics EMS-D120 Engine Monitoring System

The production prototype uses a glass cockpit including:[29][30][31]

References

  1. ^ a b Haines, Thomas B. (19 March 2009). "First roadable airplane takes flight". Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA). Retrieved 2009-03-19.
  2. ^ "FAA REGISTRY Make / Model Inquiry Results; Make/Model Code Entered: 05627LL". FAA Registry. FAA. April 04, 2012. Retrieved April 04, 2012. As of April 2012 Terrafugia had register N302TF (proof-of-concept, s/n D0001), N304TF (design prototype, s/n D0002), and N305TF (design prototype, s/n D0003) {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); External link in |quote= (help); horizontal tab character in |title= at position 68 (help)
  3. ^ http://uk.cars.yahoo.com/30062010/36/flying-car-closer-reality-0.html
  4. ^ TERRAFUGIA presentation of Transition aircraft "The Transition", 5 march 2012
  5. ^ a b Dietrich, Anna Mracek (2009-03-16). "TransitionSpecs-FirstFlight-200" (PDF). Terrafugia. Retrieved 2009-04-02.
  6. ^ Phillips, Matt (March 18, 2009). "Flying Car Takes First Flight". The Middle Seat Terminal. The Wall St. Journal. Retrieved 2009-03-19.
  7. ^ Mone, Gregory (2008-10). "The Driving Airplane Gets Real" (PDF). Popular Science. pp. 42–48. Retrieved 2009-03-20. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ a b c "'Flying Car' Gets Big Break From FAA". CBS News. 2010-06-30. Retrieved 1 July 2010.
  9. ^ "Exemption number 10072" (PDF). FAA. 2010-05-27. Retrieved 9 July 2010.
  10. ^ ""Flying Car" Moves Closer to First Delivery". Terrafugia. 2010-07-26. Retrieved 27 July 2010.
  11. ^ Fast Lane to Sky High, Ansys Fluid flow simulation software co-pilots design of production prototype roadable aircrft by Gregor Cadman, Engineer, Terrafugia, Woburn, MA, USA
  12. ^ National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (2010-11-16). "Docket No. NHTSA–2010-0154. Terrafugia, Inc.; Receipt of Application for Temporary Exemption From Requirements for Tire Selection and Rims or Motor Vehicles FMVSS No. 110, Electronic Stability Control Systems FMVSS No. 126, Glazing Materials FMVSS No. 205, and Occupant Crash Protection FMVSS No. 208" (PDF). U.S. GPO. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help); Unknown parameter |no= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |vol= ignored (|volume= suggested) (help)
  13. ^ a b Max Trescott (2010-11-18). "Terrafugia Roadable Aircraft Moves Closer to Reality". Experimental Aircraft Association. Cite error: The named reference "EAA" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  14. ^ Department of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (2011-06-29). "Terrafugia, Inc.; Grant of Application for Temporary Exemption From Certain Requirements of FMVSS No. 110, Tire Selection and Rims for Motor Vehicles, FMVSS No. 126, Electronic Stability Control Systems, FMVSS No. 205, Glazing Materials, and FMVSS No. 208, Occupant Crash Protection". Federal Register. 76 (125): 38270–38279. 76 FR 38270. Retrieved 30 June 2011. Docket No. NHTSA-2010-0154
  15. ^ Page, Lewis, "Terrafugia flying car gets road-safety exemptions", The Register, 4 July 2011; retrieved 11 July 2011.
  16. ^ Dietrich, Carl. "CEO, Terrafugia" (PDF). Terrafugia. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
  17. ^ Hussey, Matt (2011-12-31). "Wait no longer: the flying car is finally ready for takeoff". Wired.co.uk. Retrieved April 04, 2012. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  18. ^ "Worldwide Auto Show Debut of Terrafugia's Street Legal Airplane". Terrafugia. Retrieved 03 March 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  19. ^ "First Flight for Terrafugia". Retrieved 2 April 2012.
  20. ^ "Major Milestone takes "Flying Car" Closer to First Delivery" (PDF). terrafugia.com. April 2, 2012. Retrieved April 2, 2012.
  21. ^ "Terrafugia - Transition the Roadable Light Sport Aircraft : The Vehicle". Terrafugia. 2008. Retrieved 2009-03-25.
  22. ^ Haines, Thomas B. (2009-05). "Waypoints: From highway to airway". AOPA. Retrieved 2009-05-10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  23. ^ "Terrafugia -Transition the Roadable Light Sport Aircraft : The Vehicle". Terrafugia. 2010-07-26. Retrieved 2010-07-27.
  24. ^ "Photo of Transition cockpit at Oshkosh 2008". 2008-07-28. Retrieved 2009-03-26. {{cite web}}: |first= missing |last= (help)
  25. ^ Ward, Jeff (flickr id: Scofreyjet) (2009-09-13). "Photo of Transition cockpit at EAA106 Light Sport Expo". Retrieved 2011-08-02.
  26. ^ "Prince Aircraft Company - Who We Build For". Prince Aircraft Company. Retrieved 2009-03-28.
  27. ^ Ryan, David L. (2009-03-18). "'Flying car' at the Museum of Science". Boston.com (The Boston Globe). Retrieved 2009-03-28.
  28. ^ "New York 2012: Terrafugia Transition Takes Flight". Automobile Magazine. April 05, 2012. Retrieved April 06, 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  29. ^ A Cockpit View of Suburban Driving. TerrafugiaInc. 2012-03-12.
  30. ^ "Dynon in Terrafugia". Dynon Avionics Official Blog. Dynon Avionics. April 4, 2012. Retrieved April 05, 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  31. ^ "Transition Interior 2011 - High resolution graphic rendering". Terrafugia press images. Terrafugia, Inc. 2011-06-17. Retrieved April 05, 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
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