Dubai stages its first unmanned Volocopter passenger flight

[Polycount]

Self-driving cars might be the future of transportation for the rest of the world but Dubai is taking things a step further. Not content to simply let cars whisk citizens around, the city is working to make fully autonomous flying taxis a reality.

While this might seem like a pipe dream to some, Dubai successfully staged its first unmanned passenger drone flight on Monday - carrying none other than Dubai Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed himself.

The flight was short and sweet, lasting just five minutes and only covering about 200 meters, but it still served as an excellent proof of concept to skeptics. The vehicle in question was a two-person drone developed by German firm Volocopter. By all appearances, the drone resembles a miniature helicopter.

Ultimately, Dubai is hoping to develop a fleet of drones capable of flying up to 30 minutes at a time and doing so without any input from the passenger or a third-party. The city hopes to make the service as easy to use as Lyft or Uber, with citizens simply hailing a ride from an app and waiting for the drone's arrival at a nearby "Voloport."

There are obviously some concerns associated with putting humans in unmanned flying vehicles but the city is hoping to mitigate potential dangers by offering built-in parachutes, back-up rotors and smart collision avoidance technology.

The implications for technology like this are endless. Emergency responders could arrive at a crime scene or rescue operation much more quickly than ever before (and from virtually any angle). The potential for a significant reduction in ground traffic is very real as well.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/71145-dubai-stages-first-unmanned-volocopter-passenger-flight.html

 

[TomSEA]

Self driving cars, I'm up for. But a pilotless drone with a dozen dinky propellers? No frickin' way. I'll let a few tens of thousands of other guinea pigs try it out first.

 

[Vulcanproject]

Fit them with an emergency parachute and it'll be fine.

 

[Steed]

Fit them with an emergency parachute and it'll be fine.

Last I saw parachutes dont work well at low altitudes .....

 

[Vulcanproject]

Last I saw parachutes dont work well at low altitudes .....

Depends how low really. If it is 500 feet then it shouldn't be a big problem to get something workable.

 

[Steed]

Depends how low really. If it is 500 feet then it shouldn't be a big problem to get something workable.

Oh course if you search Google for "fatal fall height" it says 49 feet ... so what about the problem happening between the 49 and 500 feet mark when you parachute actually becomes useful ? I mean we are spinning numbers here, but the odds dont look to be in your favour if something were to go wrong.

 

[Vulcanproject]

Oh course if you search Google for "fatal fall height" it says 49 feet ... so what about the problem happening between the 49 and 500 feet mark when you parachute actually becomes useful ? I mean we are spinning numbers here, but the odds dont look to be in your favour if something were to go wrong.

You could say that about anything though really couldn't you? As long as it is reliable and all reasonable safety measures are taken it will be alright.

It is inevitable there will be accidents. It is just what is an acceptable level of risk. You wake up the morning and you could die in any number of ways but you still get out of bed. If it is no more likely you'll be killed in an air taxi accident than a ground one it is difficult to complain

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

Self driving cars, I'm up for. But a pilotless drone with a dozen dinky propellers? No frickin' way. I'll let a few tens of thousands of other guinea pigs try it out first.

Sure, it's not ready for prime time yet but it'll wind up being a lot safer than a human driven taxi. In fact your chances of ending up in a fatal crash in a vehicle driven by yourself is a lot greater but it's natural to dismiss that because we as humans are so used to what we do. We're all creatures of habit and when we get taken out of our comfort zone, we kick, cry and scream until we get used to whatever replaces it.

 

[amstech]

Medivac rides in a Helicopter in my area (flight to Syracuse) cost about $65,000.00 and most insurances don't cover it.

http://northcountrynow.com/news/lif...awrence-county-residents-massive-debt-0204500

 

[IAMTHESTIG]

Self driving cars, I'm up for. But a pilotless drone with a dozen dinky propellers? No frickin' way. I'll let a few tens of thousands of other guinea pigs try it out first.

Sure, it's not ready for prime time yet but it'll wind up being a lot safer than a human driven taxi. In fact your chances of ending up in a fatal crash in a vehicle driven by yourself is a lot greater but it's natural to dismiss that because we as humans are so used to what we do. We're all creatures of habit and when we get taken out of our comfort zone, we kick, cry and scream until we get used to whatever replaces it.

True true but the major problem with being in a vehicle not driven by a human is there is no compelling accountability. I know there are cowards willing to kill themselves to kill someone else but when there is no ones butt on the line except the passengers, that's a hard pill to swallow. This is really cool tech and could save people a LOT of time but it will have to prove itself before most people will be willing to use it on a routine basis.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

True true but the major problem with being in a vehicle not driven by a human is there is no compelling accountability. I know there are cowards willing to kill themselves to kill someone else but when there is no ones butt on the line except the passengers, that's a hard pill to swallow. This is really cool tech and could save people a LOT of time but it will have to prove itself before most people will be willing to use it on a routine basis.

Fully autonomous travel will still take a fair while to be globally accepted but it will happen. There's change of attitude with each generation of people. As for accountability? There will always be someone, some company or something held accountable. When a passenger airliner takes a nose dive out of the sky killing all on board, it's not always the fault of the pilots, it's more often than not a whole set of minor circumstances happening at once to cause a major catastrophe.