Stealthy Personal Flyer Half Airplane, Half Helicopter

This pretty little personal flyer lets you take off and land vertically (VTOL) in a stealthy manner, using electric motors. Called the "Puffin", it is NASA's answer to the US Marines' Osprey VTOL airplane.

In theory it can cruise at 150 miles per hour and sprint at more like 300 miles per hour. Since the craft is electrically propelled it doesn't need air intake, so thinning air is not a limitation, meaning it can reach — again, in theory — 30,000 feet before limitations on battery power force it to descend...

...Aside from the military applications (super-stealthy troop insertions with very low thermal signatures?) the quiet, uncomplicated, low-powered electric lift — just 60 horsepower gets pilot and craft airborne — shows how a world in which everyday folks get around modern cities via personal aircraft may not be as sci-fi as was once thought. _Gizmodo

Al Fin was unable to convince Jack Bauer to give up his priority position in line to test fly the Puffin. But just as soon as he can, he will provide a personal test flight report.

Foldable Helicopter: Perfect for Urban Survival!

If you live in a high rise apartment, deep inside a large city, you may have wondered how you could escape the unruly urban jungle, should the fecal matter hit the fan. Here is your answer: the Hummel Helicopter, which can be folded up and kept in a closet until it is needed. Simply roll the folded vehicle down the hallway to the elevator, go up to roof level, unfold the machine, and fly off to your retreat. Having a birds-eye view of miles of vehicles backed-up on the panic clogged freeways below, is an added bonus.

The “Hummel” (”bumble bee”) is a light helicopter for [a total of] two passengers. It can be used for passenger transport (air taxi), as well as for e.g. emergency transports like organs or units of stored blood and of course for conventional tasks of a helicopter like monitoring (e.g. coast guard, police, army, scientists) and to be mobile. The tandem rotor design guarantees a more efficient aircraft performance as the main-tail rotor design, without wasting fuel. _ImpactLab_via_dVice_via_Zoobota_via_DesignBlog

Terrafugia's Transition "driveable airplane" is another possibility, if you can find a long enough open stretch of pavement to use for a runway. Another alternative for those who live near a river, lake, or bay, is to keep an amphibious plane handy that can take off and land on either water or solid surface.

If you have ever been caught up in a large-scale evacuation of a large city, you will immediately understand the seriousness behind the silliness. In the past, such an evacuation might have been prompted by the approach of a hurricane. In the future, growing numbers of potentially predictable and emergent threats might trigger such an outrush of people.

Imagine if the current Swine Flu had been genengineered for maximum contagion and lethality? Just a few cases in the local emergency room might have been enough to trigger wide-scale panic and impromptu evacuation. A simple radioactive "dirty bomb" could accomplish the same mindless stampede without so much as a single fatality. As earthquakes and volcanoes become more predictable, evacuation plans will grow apace. Face it: getting out of a city in the midst of full-scale panic would not be easy or risk-free.

Check in with Survival Blog regularly, for a wide array of commentary on this and other survival topics.

Personal Flight Goes VTOL

This personal tilt rotor cruises at 230 mph, but takes off and lands vertically. It is powered by a serial hybrid system, utilising twin electric motors for prop power, with auxiliary battery power for takeoffs, landings, and flight transition. The batteries are kept topped off by a lightweight 104 hp two stroke IC engine. The inventor hopes to limit empty weight for the prototype to 1000 pounds. A lot of work remains to be done to achieve a flightworthy rating.

The gentleman on your left is flying a personal hydrogen peroxide chemical rocket pack. He has flown 457 metres over the Arkansas River's 321 metre deep Royal Gorge. It took him 21 seconds to make the flight--leaving him a full 9 seconds reserve power, for safety.

These vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) flight systems are meant as single person devices. Safety is obviously not the first priority in the early stages of development. Test pilots have to be of a special breed--not likely to be trial lawyers or politicians. Test pilots have to have courage and nerves of steel. They understand what it means to live entirely in the present, or they do not live very long at all. They take responsibility for their own lives every moment.