- Detlev van Platen says taking to airways is next logical step for manufacturers
- It comes after a flying two-seater was unveiled at last year’s Geneva auto show
- A raft of firms are working on shared air taxis users would hail using an app
Porsche could create flying cars to compete in a possible urban air taxi market, according to the car-maker’s head of sales.
Detlev von Platen says journeys could be cut down to a tenth of their current length by utilising airspace.
His comments follow last year’s unveiling of a two-seater flying car by the brand’s designer Italdesign.
Porsche’s sales chief says the firm could start creating air taxis after this design was unveiled in Geneva last year
Detlev van Platen says flying cars are the logical solution to congested roads
Mr von Platen said told German magazine Automobilwoche that taking to the skies was the next logical step for manufacturers.
‘That would really make sense,’ he said. ‘If I drive from (the Porsche plant in) Zuffenhausen to Stuttgart airport, I need at least half an hour, if I’m lucky. Flying would take only three and a half minutes.’
Porsche would join a raft of firms working on designs in anticipation of a shift in the transport market.
Conventional cars are set to be replaced with self-driving vehicles that can be shared via ride-hailing apps.
Italdesign and Airbus presented the Pop.Up flying car at last year’s Geneva auto show as an alternative designed to avoid gridlock on city roads.
Automobilwoche said that under Porsche’s plans, passengers would be able to have some control over the flying vehicle but would not need a pilot license because many functions would be automated.
Potential competitors to a flying vehicle made by Porsche would be German start-ups Volocopter, backed by Daimler, Lilium Jet and eVolo, as well as US-based Terrafugia and California-based Joby Aviation.