Samson unveils flying car's transforming tail
The carbon fiber vehicle, with its swinging wings and folding tail, can reportedly reconfigure under its own power within a couple of minutes.
Samson Motors (Redmond, Ore., U.S.) announced Jan. 23 that its Switchblade flying car's transforming tail is now fully automated. The carbon fiber vehicle can reportedly reconfigure at the push of a button. In around two minutes, the flying car's tail transforms from driving to flying mode or vice versa, under its own power.
“The folding tail creates an image like the Transformers, the Batmobile, and James Bond all rolled into one,” claims Switchblade designer Sam Bousfield. “When we saw it live for the first time, the visual impact was absolutely stunning.”
According to Samson, Switchblade retracts the wings and tail in a way that protects them while on the ground. While the hallmark swinging wings were perfected, tested, and unveiled two years ago, the folding tail has just now been finished and tested as a complete, powered unit.
“There is a fluidity to the tail movement that is more like a living thing than a mechanical creation,” adds Samson mechanical engineer, David Nobles.
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