Flying cars are very real and may arrive very soon

The futuristic electric vehicle can be driven around normally on the streets or taken to the skies to avoid all the traffic below, all for a hefty price tag of £235,000.

Alef successfully tested its flying car in a city environment for the first time mid-February 2025.

Footage captured the vehicle driving forward a few metres before taking off vertically. It then glided over the car in front of it, landed smoothly, and continued driving.

Jim Dukhovny, CEO of Alef, commented: “This drive and flight test is an important proof of technology in a real-world city environment. We hope it will be a moment similar to the Wright Brothers’ Kitty Hawk video, proving to humanity that new transportation is possible.”

The test took place on a public street that had been temporarily closed off. According to Alef, this video is the first in history to show a car both driving and taking off vertically.

The company stated: “While previous videos exist of cars driving and using a runway to take off, as well as footage of tethered flights and eVTOL flying taxis, this is the first publicly released video of a car driving and taking off vertically.”

For the test, Alef used a special ultralight version of the Model Zero. The production version, the Model A, will be a two-seater with a road range of 200 miles and a flying range of 110 miles.

Constructed from carbon fibre, the vehicle measures approximately 17ft long and 7ft wide—small enough to fit into standard parking spaces and garages. On the road, it operates like a conventional electric car, using four small engines housed within the wheels. This design leaves space at the front and rear for eight independent propellers, which adjust speed to enable multi-directional flight.

The vehicle utilises distributed electric propulsion, with a mesh cover over the rotor blades to allow airflow through the structure. In the air, it has a cruise speed of 110mph, while its road speed is limited to 25-35mph—despite having the capability to go much faster. This speed cap allows it to qualify as an ultralight ‘low-speed vehicle’, a classification used for small electric vehicles such as golf carts, helping it pass regulatory requirements.

Mr Dukhovny claimed the Model A is easy to operate, requiring only 15 minutes of training. Its flight controls are similar to those of a consumer drone.

He also noted that the Model A differs from most so-called flying cars, as it functions as a true car. Many competing models are effectively eVTOLs—electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft—that resemble small helicopters rather than road vehicles.

Alef’s founders began developing the concept in 2015, coincidentally the same year Marty McFly travelled ‘Back to the Future’ in the second instalment of the Hollywood trilogy.

The Model A is currently available for pre-order at £235,000—comparable to high-end Rolls-Royces, Bentleys, and Aston Martins. However, the company aims to significantly reduce costs in the future. Mr Dukhovny’s vision is to make flying cars an affordable reality, with the price expected to drop to around £25,000 once mass production begins.