The Toyota Skyblade, more accurately known as the SkyDrive, is a compact flying car project backed by Toyota and developed by the Cartivator team in Japan. Pitched as one of the smallest flying cars in the world, it uses drone-style rotors to take off vertically, hover, and fly while also driving on the road. The original goal was a working prototype to light the Olympic flame at the 2020 Tokyo Games. Here is how the Toyota flying car works and what it promises.
What is the Toyota SkyDrive flying car?
Flying vehicles have become a serious trend for investors all over the world, and Toyota decided to join the movement. The SkyDrive project was conceived back in 2012, when Tsubasa Nakamura and a group of friends won a competition with a flying vehicle concept dubbed Cartivator. The same team began full development of the SkyDrive in 2014, and the project has been gaining support and funding to test out the proof of concept. Many people search for it as the Toyota Skyblade, but the official name behind the program is SkyDrive.
How did Toyota get involved?
Toyota gave its full support to the creation of a full-scale prototype developed for a manned test flight. Cartivator hoped that a working prototype would be ready by 2020 so that the SkyDrive could light up the Olympic flame in Tokyo. As documented by eVTOL News and New Atlas, the carmaker's backing turned a volunteer side project into a credible flying-car effort.
What are the Toyota Skyblade specs?
SkyDrive measures 2.9 meters long, 1.3 meters wide and 1.1 meters high. These tiny measurements make it one of the smallest flying cars in the world. The team behind the project promises a flight speed of 100 km/h and a driving speed of 150 km/h. This flying vehicle is equipped with common drone technology, including rotor blades that vary their speed to change travel direction. It is designed to hover roughly 10 meters over the ground and is classified as a VTOL, a vertical take-off and landing aircraft.
Will the Toyota flying car become real?
Whether the Toyota Skyblade becomes an everyday reality remains an open question, but Toyota's support certainly means the effort has gotten serious. The flying car category has matured quickly since this concept, and several eVTOL aircraft are now closer to production than ever.
Explore real flying machines
If the Toyota flying car sparks your imagination, TheArsenale stocks aircraft that bring the dream closer to reality. Browse the aero collection, then look at the XPENG X2 eVTOL flying car, the Ehang AAV autonomous passenger drone, the Atea hybrid-electric aircraft, and the Insky Linx personal aircraft.
