When it comes to the latest “flying car” fad – that made at least one expert ask people to stop calling them flying cars – the French company Vaylon has developed its Pegasus (or Pegase) with the military in mind, first and foremost. The vehicle’s combination of a stealthy paraglider and off-road vehicle gives it the advantage of being able to traverse difficult terrain, which would make it beneficial to military forces, humanitarian teams, or even researchers in the desert, as founder Jérôme Dauffy told the New York Times in 2014.
But, let’s face it, in a flashy industry that is growing in excitement with each new aircraft/vehicle that is unveiled, this is all about the thrill of the ride, so the Pegasus is certainly something that will have the more adventurous among us lining up to test drive. And that’s especially true now that French pilot Bruno Vezzoli has flown the Pegasus across the English Channel in the latest test flight, which was sponsored by Cartier.
After putting his vehicle on display throughout Paris on Tuesday, Vezzoli took to the skies on an approximately 50-minute trip from Ambleteuse to Dover.
Vezzoli was joined in the sky by several paramotors who filmed and photographed his journey, but the bold pilot also checked in live on Facebook to share the flight and landing with his friends and fans.
The Pegasus made its first flight just days before the 2014 Eurosatory trade show, which featured more than 55,000 visitors. The original prototype was powered by a Rotax 912 engine, which allowed it to reach a top speed of 60 mph on the road. In flight, the Pegasus travels up to 50 mph using a pusher propeller, and a flight can last three hours.
As recent as 2016, the company was looking to sell the stealthy aircraft to the U.S. military.
