As you will know from our impeccable range of Audi rental vehicles, we hold a special place in our hearts for the German carmakers. Having given us the Q7, R8 as well as more executive models like the A6, Audi is constantly revising their fleet to remain a modern car manufacturer of choice.
This week, the firm has announced details of their latest project, claiming to be working on a flying taxi venture. Wanting to get a slice of the vehicle automation action, it appears a humble autonomous car simply wouldn’t do. Going all out, Audi is working on a flying taxi concept, having partnered with Airbus and Audi subsidiary, Italdesign. Italdesign is an Audi-owned creative agency based in Italy.
Together they have combined a self-driving car with a passenger drone. Having made a small scale model of the taxi, the businesses decided it was time to run a test flight. And, according to the firms, it was a great success, moving well and responding to instructions with ease.
“Flying taxis are on the way. We at Audi are convinced of that,” said Dr. Bernd Martens, president of Italdesign.
“If we succeed in making a smart allocation of traffic between roads and airspace, people and cities can benefit in equal measure.”
“More and more people are moving to cities. And more and more people will be mobile thanks to automation. In the future, senior citizens, children, and people without a driver’s license will want to use convenient robot taxis.”
While the quarter-scale product is far from the finished article, Audi believes their flying taxi product will be ready and used by humans within the decade.
Let us know what you think. Is Audi onto something with this vehicle? Share your thoughts and opinions with us.