No, we’re not making this up. Earlier this month it emerged that a company called Aerofex are planning to start selling hover bikes.
The machines, which have been in development since 2007, won’t actually be available to customers until 2017, but they’ve started taking pre-orders via their website.
The Aero X bike hovers using three 240 horsepower engines, with three rotors not unlike the ones used in the tails of helicopters.
It will be able to hover up to 12 feet above the ground, carry two passengers and travel up to speeds of 72 km/h according to the company’s website.
Apparently the machine will take relatively little training to learn to fly. The company’s founder Mark DeRoche told Discovery News that “someone who only has motorcycle experience [will] be able to get on it and feel comfortable right away.”
It’s still being tested at the moment, but as the videos show it seems to be working well and the fact that they’ve started to take pre-orders is a big step.
Of course, technology like this won’t come cheap. At the moment the full price for an Aero X is $85,000 with a $5,000 deposit. But for rich folk who’ve dreamed of recreating the speeder bike sequence from Star Wars, that price might start to seem reasonable…
We look forward to hearing about further developments with baited breath!