‘未来已至’：利文顿夫妇驾驶飞行 eVTOL 飞向天空

LIVONIA, N.Y. (WROC) — In the rural open spaces of Livonia, Chad Panipinto and his fiancé Tania Steffenilla own what they call the future of transportation.

"We watched The Flintstones, and then they watched The Jetsons when we were all kids, at least our generation did. And now it's happening," said Steffenilla.

After spending $250,000 and waiting almost a year, they now get to live out that childhood dream with their ultralight Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing aircraft, or eVTOL, which lets one person climb in and take to the sky.

"The feeling of the wind going up. I've been in helicopters, jet planes, and there's nothing like the smoothness of this thing," said Panipinto.

They say 80% of the craft is made of carbon fiber, and that it's pretty easy to operate. You don't even need a pilot's license. You just have to register the craft with the FAA and follow their guidelines and rules.

"Staying out of airspace, like airports and stuff away from supermarkets or schools with massive amounts of people," said Steffenilla.

Chad says this model has a battery life of 50 minutes and can go as high as 1,500ft. They don't ever go that high, and they only fly around their 70-acre property.

While the person flying the drone is in the air, the other is on the ground with a backup controller and can take control for mid-flight emergencies. They also have a ballistic parachute inside the cockpit.

"The future is here. We're just getting a little ahead of the game and having fun with it in the meantime," said Steffenilla.