The concept

The Jetson is a jet-powered flying saucer inspired by the Jetsons cartoon, which aired in the 1960s. This flying recreational vehicle could be used to fly over your private property or commute to work over short distances. It could also be developed for the entertainment industry (racing at airshows) or for military missions.

Renderings provided by Charles Bombardier

The background

When the Flyboard hoverboard was shown to the public in early April, it took the world by surprise showing it could fly at speeds close to 160 km/h and go as high as 3,00 metres for ten minutes. A lot of people thought it was a trick, but when Franky Zapata smashed a Guinness World record , things took a serious turn. It’s now possible that we might actually be able to build a Jetsons-style flying car in the next few years.

How it works

The ‘Jetson’ would be the size of a standard side-by-side vehicle. It could carry only one passenger for safety and fuel consumption reasons. The vehicle would have five jet thrusters located under its fuselage. Two fuel tanks would be located inside the frame on opposing sides, and two additional spaces would be used to store cargo.

An onboard flying system would help control and stabilize the Jetson automatically. The pilot would need to take flying lessons to learn how to pilot the flying saucer and learn aerodynamics, air regulations, weather, etc.

The Jetson would have four landing legs. We have shown retractable legs, but it might be safer to add wheels. Of course, the Jetson would be equipped with navigation and position lights, strobes, LED landing lights and an easy-to-read dashboard. The overall shape of the Jetson would be optimized to create more lift when it’s flying horizontally and save on fuel.

The Jetson should be designed so it could stay airborne if one of its jet thrusters failed, so the number of thrusters could be increased and other back up security systems could be incorporated in the design. For instance, the flying saucer could be equipped with a parachute in case some of its jets malfunctioned, and interior or exterior airbags could be placed on the aircraft.

What it’s used for

The Jetson flying saucer could be used as a commuting vehicle authorized to fly in dedicated airspace corridors. Currently the jets are quite noisy, so it might prove difficult to receive the authorization to fly it in downtown city locations. These vehicles could also be used in extreme racing events or demonstration flights. The military may also have a few ideas to test—or we might see one in an upcoming movie.

The designer

I would like to thank Adolfo Esquivel, who created the 3D renderings of the Jetson. Esquivel holds a degree in industrial design and currently works in Montreal as an industrial designer for Beam me up games. He is also the author of the Motowalk people mover and the Metropolis police patrol drone.