The SkyCar's First Flights in Spain with SkySchool

We can now report that the SkyCar flew for the first time up to 1000ft from the SkySchool HQ at Aerodromo Ordis in north east Spain on Thursday 22nd January 2009. At 8.30am Neil Laughton, the SkyCar Expedition Leader, launched the SkyCar under the direction of SkySchool MD Alex Ledger. The SkyCar required the full 350m runway in order to launch and lost a little bit of height as it went off the end of the runway however Neil followed Alex's radio commands to keep the SkyCar into wind and proceeded to climb out over the Torremirona Golf Course much to the annoyance of the local inhabitants!




Neil flew the SkyCar around Aerodromo Ordis for the next 25 minutes; due to the weight of the SkyCar it's airspeed was around 75kph, which is very fast for a Ram Air canopy. After a few practise approaches Neil carried out a text book landing back at the airfield. This was promptly celebrated by all involved with a magnum of Mumm Champagne. The SkyCar had two more flights, logging a total of 60 minutes flying time, with the final flight being filmed from the air by Alex Ledger in a Quicksilver microlight flown by Joan Casals, the owner of Aerodromo Ordis. This was an enormous achievement for all involved, in particular Neil Laughton and Giles Cardozo, the SkyCar's designer.



The Expedition Team departed the SkySchool HQ on Friday 23rd and headed off to southern Spain in order prepare for an attempt to cross the Gibraltar Straits to north Africa. SkySchool would like to congratulate the entire SkyCar Expedition Team on their success and wish them all the best of luck for the rest of the expedition. They have proved the concept of a Flying Car and opened up an exciting new world in recreational aviation and ram air technology. For further information visit: http://www.skycarexpedition.com/news.php