What Could Possibly Go Wrong: Flying Hummers
Suicide Ride A flying Hummer would be inherently unstable and vulnerable to small-arms fire. Jamie SneddonBut they would be so cool Last April, Darpa proposed a novel solution to the problem of IED-strewn roads and otherwise impassable landscapes in Afghanistan and elsewhere: fly over them. The Pentagon agency's $50-million-plus exploratory program for the Transformer (TX) calls for a "robust ground vehicle" that can quickly transform into a vertical-takeoff-and-landing (VTOL) aircraft with a 1,000-pound payload capacity and a flying range of nearly 300 miles. Darpa has a daunting list of specs for any would-be contractors: It must be able to take on small-arms fire and meet federal standards for safety and crash protection. It's got to have four-wheel drive and be able to reach an altitude of 10,000 feet. Oh, and should the driver become incapacitated, it has to be able to fly itself. It's a lot to ask. The fundamental challenge of...