It was only a year ago that the switchblade flying car took its first real flight, bringing it one step closer to real-world use. Based on what was learned during this flight, its makers have now revealed the design of the production version of the vehicle.

If you are not familiar with the subject SwitchbladeIt is a fixed-wing flying car developed by Oregon aerospace company Samson Sky for the civilian market.

In ground mode, the three-wheeled two-seater moves along the road like any other car, with its wings folded under its body and its tail folded back. The prototype is currently capable of reaching a targeted top ground speed of 125 mph (201 km/h).

Upon reaching an airport or airstrip, the Switchblade goes into flight mode. As you might expect, this involves folding its wings and extending its tail. The whole process only takes three minutes.

Samson Sky

The idea is that the vehicle will then take off and fly to another runway near its destination, just like an ordinary small private plane. The hybrid power system runs on regular 91-octane gasoline and should ultimately offer a range of 500 miles (805 km) on a full 36-gallon (125-litre) fuel tank.

After landing on the target runway, the Switchblade will retract its wings and tail, then move from the ground towards the exact target.

Prototype at Grant Country International Airport in Moses Lake, Washington, last November made its first flight. The aircraft reached an altitude of 500 ft (152 m) and circled the area for six minutes before returning to the airport. Plans call for it to be capable of reaching altitudes of 13,000 ft (3,962 m).

This brings us to the new design driven by the performance of the test vehicle.

Samson Sky

Most importantly, the Switchblade’s two rear thruster propellers now fold into the fuselage when not in use; these were previously rigidly mounted on scoops on the sides of the vehicle. According to Samson Sky, wind tunnel tests show that these and other facilitating measures should allow the aircraft to achieve the target cruising airspeed of 257 km/h.

The new design is also intended to make the Switchblade easier to make. This is an important consideration as the company claims to have already received around 2,300 bookings from buyers in 57 countries. Pricing is supposed to start at $170,000 a pop.

“Everything we do, we do with the thought of how to produce thousands of Switchblades to meet the incredible demand we have,” says Samson Sky CEO Sam Bousfield.

The company is currently in the process of building three new prototypes that will undergo both air and ground testing over the next 18 months.

You can see the folding mechanism of the final design in the video below.

Source: Samson Sky