Meet Airspeeded, a startup that makes unmanned electric flying race cars. The Alauda Mk3 is its name, and it was tested in a desert in southern Australia. The drone was manoeuvred remotely in the air to handle intricate curves and reached speeds of over 150 kmph in a video released on YouTube. The EXA Series events, organised by Airspeeder, the electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle (VTOL) flying car racing series, are expected to feature the full field of multi-rotor unmanned Mk3 racing craft later this year.
As the 45-second movie begins, a voice-over declares, “This is the future of racing… for pilots and flying machines to combine at the digital frontier.”
During the racing series, up to four teams with two remote pilots each would compete in three separate races. In a release, Airspeeder claimed, “They will race ‘blade-to-blade’ over places unreachable to regular motorsport.”
Without a pilot, the Mk3 weighs about 130 kg and has a top speed of 100 km/h in 2.8 seconds. It can also fly at a height of 500 metres. It features a detachable battery that can be replaced in 20 seconds, allowing it to swiftly rejoin the race. It claims that a completely charged battery pack can power the craft for 10-15 minutes.
According to Airspeeder, the aircraft uses a systems-based approach to safety, which means that a single operational failure will not result in the vehicle’s core function, controlled flight, being lost. All systems are monitored on the ground during flights using a telemetry system.
The world is ready for sophisticated air mobility, according to Matthew Pearson, founder of Airspeeder and Alauda Aeronautics, and Airspeeder and EXA represent the future of motorsport.
Alauda Aeronautics is responsible for the design and construction of the racing cars. According to the announcement, the EXA Series is Airspeeder’s first racing series, in which remote pilots will take control of the world’s first full-scale electric flying vehicles.