Surefly

A little rain canceled the Workhorse Surefly taxi drone flight because the aircraft is not waterproof. After receiving approval from the FAA, the passenger drone was supposed to make its maiden flight on Monday, but it stayed grounded because of safety concerns. The cool Nevada air with some mild drizzle proved to be too much for the aircraft that is supposed to be the future of commuting. What a bummer.

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Workhorse’s Surefly personal helicopter drone was first shown to the public during the Paris Air Show in June of 2017. Now we have learned that Workhorse has received an Experimental Airworthiness Certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to fly their personal drone during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas next week.

The Surefly is a hybrid octocopter that can carry two passengers. The aerial vehicle can be flown manually with a joystick. Something that should be as easy as flying a DJI drone, according to Workhorse. Or it can be flown in a fully autonomous (drone) mode using sense-and-avoid technology to bring its passengers safely to their destination. A 4-cylinder gasoline engine charges the batteries, which in turn power the electric motors for the eight propellers. The personal helicopter has a range of 70 miles and can lift 400 lbs. The rotor arms can be folded as shown in the photos below.

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