Production team
In the first programme, James seeks a better and bolder way of getting from A to B and begins his travels in the frozen wastes of Russia to take the controls of a means of transport kept secret from the public until the 1990s – the ekranoplan. Capable of skimming above sea and ice at incredibly high speeds, this flying machine originally baffled American intelligence agencies.
Continuing his travels, James heads to the US in a bid to pilot the world’s only surviving flying car for its first flight in four years. The legendary Aerocar of the 1950s was once a darling of the skies, and with Marilyn Monroe, Ava Gardner and Lana Turner as previous passengers, it proves that a flying car can be the ultimate babe magnet.
Searching for the world’s smallest helicopter James travels to Japan, where he finds a machine which is held aloft by four tiny engines. With each engine weighing the same as a large chicken – but with the power of ten horses – James watches in amazement as it takes off.
Even turning himself into a human rocket in his quest, James straps on a rocket-pack in a suburban garden in Sussex. The machine which eats up fuel faster than a jumbo jet has been built by commercial pilot Stuart Ross, a man who likes flying so much he wants to do it without the aeroplane.
And finally, in California, James encounters his ultimate dream – the latest in a long line of inventions by Dr Moller, a man who has spent 40 years pursuing a flying car capable of vertical take off. Its controls are so simple that anyone can fly it, but is the world ready for a flying car?
Take it further
The WIG page - a compendium of information on Ekranoplan type vehicles
Himmelstrurmer - Detailed exploration of experiments in personal propulsion conducted by the Nazis
Inspired? Why not consider studying science or engineering and technology with the Open University?
First broadcast: Sunday 5 Oct 2008 on BBC TWO
OU on the BBC: James May's Big Ideas - About the series
Production team
James May is back with a new series on BBC TWO: three programmes looking at three different and distinct future concepts. Read more : OU on the BBC: James May's Big Ideas - About the series
James May's big transport challenge
BBC
James invites you to explore some of the ways of getting from A to B using a range of transport options, from taking the bus... Read more : James May's big transport challenge
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Comments on: "Come Fly with Me"
JohnFalch has started a thread discussing Come Fly with Me.
As previous commentators have pointed out, James May missed several significant flying machines such as the Autogyro. He also missed the latest Skycar (not a Moller), but a dune buggy with a parasail, as reported in the BBC feeds, invented by a Brit.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7821979.stm
Personally, I prefer flying one of my bicycles. My Brompton folds up and I can take it on a bus, a plane, a boat or a train.
Graham Cooper, Chesterfield
Just an addendum to my last post,i thought i should add that "The Lifter" might also be the result of an effect known as "Coulomb's Law" from the late 1700's as formulated by a frenchman,(the late)Charles Coulomb...what has NASA been doing all those years? By the way Lake Laguna has it's dribbly bits in Italy and it's railway in Switzerland! Mike.
Hi James,
I am wondering why "The Lifter" technology which has no engine and has been shown to work,(in the Earth's atmosphere at least) didn't get a mention.A quick search on the 'net will reveal the sites with information on the subject which is in it's infancy and to date no-one is quite sure exactly how it works, but it does.Suffice to say that a constructed craft can be lifted up into the air by means of an applied electrical source.Most instances i have seen show a craft that will rise from the ground usually in a vertical manner,and i don't think it works in way that contradicts the laws of physics even though it has no engine/moving parts because most theories point to the applied electrical field interfering with the atmosphere at a molecular level and thus making some sort of energy to create lift or pull,(not the Kouander effect)or by somehow cancelling out Gravity,Mike.
Hello James,
I really enjoyed this show, being an aviation enthousiast myself (BBC is available in Belgium).
At the end of the show you provide an answer to the question why all these personal transportations are unlikely to become mainstream anytime soon being "Paperwork".
While this indeed might be part of the answer, I believe the more likely answer is the cost in energy that is needed to cancel the gravitational force of the Earth and make anything weighty airborn without having to first accelerate to a speed compatible with flying.
Even if the system remains very lightweight, like the Japanese strap on helicopter, the energy needed will always outcost the benefits.
And once you'll want something a little bit more comfortable, secure and instrumented than this clever machine, but which wouldn't even support your own weight, the quantity of energy that it will require will rapidely and exponentialy grow to unrealistic levels.
And even if we eventualy reach a point where an abundant, cheap and renewable source of energy is readily available, the release of alot of it will always produce alot of noise, which will remain a big issue.
I'm sure the evolution of technologies will alleviate some of these problems, but the laws of physic means the use and release of alot of energy will always be an issue.
Unless absolutely necessary (like medevac for instance) use of personal VTOL will remain a distant dream for quite a while.
Looking forward to enjoying your next show.
Re: Comments on: "Come Fly with Me"
I thought that they'd have checked... Lake Lugano is in Switzerland, not Italy!
Hi James
Unfortunately you missed this which I think is exactly what you want for your own personal transport ... but I think it is still under wraps as the inventor is fielding it to the BIG players in the US
http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/1952597 and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zeJxGP-bPI
Hi James,
Why oh why did you not mention autogiros. That really is the way: take / land in the length of a football strip absolute max.
200mph straight linew speed, flown with a microlite licence, no radio required, low fule bills and insurance, turns into a low speed car with great ease as the blades do not use high spec rivets / bolts, since they are not powered. It also lands quite easily if unpowered (much safer than a helicopter in fact, though not as safe a light aircraft), just put in a dive, speed builds and you get more lift pull up just beforte the ground and land.
remeber the Bond film in japan: look for little nellie.
you forgot the WASP The WASP (Williams Aerial Systems Platform) from the same people who make the jet belt and it is in my book the ultimate in personal transport check it out its unreal
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=IUHHI5JByyI
http://www.vectorsite.net/avplatfm.html#m1
and on a side note in my opinion is the thing in the mexican flyingwitch vids on youtube look it up if u aint seen it lol
Re: Comments on: "Come Fly with Me"
hi to all.
Just today on bbc2 I saw this show and loved it!
Flying carsare a great idea, but I saw one problem that all excepte the planes had in comon:
whether it be jet pack, the strap on helicopter or the "flying socer
none of them can really go anywhere without BALANCE,
All of them would work ten times better if they could keep perfect balance,
I'm not just stating this obvious probleme to nargue the creaters of these inginious machines
But because I believe I have a simple and easy answer to the problem,
the most lightly candidates for this solution are the strap on helicopter or the "flying socer.
If their is some way of comming in contact with the creators or a trustable intermidiary,
it would be my pleasure to help,
I dont wana give the idea away without getting any credit for it. (Fool me once...)
To James may :
Thank you for this show and also for top gear
You are a great presenter and I hope to see more of your shows
It is nice to find shows in this day and age that cut out the bull s*** and still give all the most interesting facts.
And I hope we might meet some day on the road
PS: If you ever happen to watch the fotage from this years B2 (budapest-Bamako) you might see me on it.
I wonder if I'm taller than you ;-p
Sails