Aston Martin unveils its first stunning flying car concept
As the technology to build flying cars improves, and as companies start to look rolling out the first services, the competition is heating up.
Key takeaways
- Like its eventual competitors, the Volante Vision is a Vertical Take Off and Landing aircraft, or VTOL, that will use a hybrid electric power train and will have multiple propellers.
- A horizontally mounted turbo-prop will be on the back of the craft, while a Y-wing at the front of the plane will have two pairs of propellers that can both tilt and rotate.
- After decades in the waiting the marketplace for flying taxi’s is now starting to look decidedly crowded, and it will be interesting to see which of these air taxis actually come to the market.
Cite or link to this article
Griffin, M. (2018) 'Aston Martin unveils its first stunning flying car concept', 311 Institute, 30 July. Available at: https://www.311institute.com/aston-martin-unveils-its-first-stunning-flying-car-concept/ (Accessed: 1 October 2026).
Lamborghini recently unveiled their first electric hyper car concept where the car is the battery, but now Aston Martin, the iconic British car brand, is one upping them and slapping their name on the long list of companies, from Airbus, who recently unveiled their PopUp concept, EHang and Volocopter, to express interest in creating what it’s calling a “personal aerial vehicle,” or by any other name, a flying taxi, and they unveiled their concept for a three seat aircraft called the Volante Vision at the Farnborough International Airshow this month.
Like its eventual competitors, the Volante Vision is a Vertical Take Off and Landing aircraft, or VTOL, that will use a hybrid electric power train and will have multiple propellers. A horizontally mounted turbo-prop will be on the back of the craft, while a Y-wing at the front of the plane will have two pairs of propellers that can both tilt and rotate.
See the concept for yourself
Of course, this is Aston Martin, so the brand will also incorporate luxury into the design by default, and naturally the flying taxi will be equipped with autonomous navigation and information will be projected onto the all-glass cockpit canopy. Aston Martin sees its flying vehicle as a step up from the ones currently under development by companies like Uber, who recently picked their six favourite flying taxi station concepts, and who plan on offering a more “utilitarian” flying taxi experience, and appealing to a clientele who are “in search of luxury transportation,” for example people in Dubai where they recently trialled the world’s first flying taxi service.
Aston Martin is working with partners on this project that have experience in the aviation industry, including Rolls Royce, the engineering company not the car company, who are developing their own flying taxi, but these projects appear to be separate. After decades in the waiting the marketplace for flying taxi’s is now starting to look decidedly crowded, and it will be interesting to see which of these air taxis actually come to the market.
Source: Aston Martin
FAQ
Why does this matter?
As the technology to build flying cars improves, and as companies start to look rolling out the first services, the competition is heating up.
About the author
Matthew Griffin Founder, 311 Institute
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath."
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Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath." 15-time best selling author of the "Codex of the Future" series, Matthew is the Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working with royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77 governments, NGOs, and multi-national mid and mega cap firms to help them explore, shape, and lead the next 50 years of business and society.
An award-winning YouTube creator with over a million followers, with an unrivalled global reach and impact, Matthew is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, lecturer, and mentor who collaborates with global leaders through the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to shape pivotal initiatives such as the UN’s AI for Humanity program, the United Nations Conference of the Parties (UN COP), and the World Economic Forum in Davos.
As the former Global Head of Cloud, National Security, and Enterprise Sales for companies including Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, Matthew has a proven track record of building multi-billion dollar business units and turning failing divisions into market leaders. His ability to identify, analyse, and communicate the implications of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends is unparalleled, and his insights are trusted by many of the world’s most respected organisations, including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi, Coca-Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Dow Jones, EY, Google, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, Siemens AG and Siemens Energy, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, Walmart, Workday, Worldpay and many others.
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Sources and further reading
- Farnborough International Airshow farnborough.com
- Aston martin race to the skies media.astonmartin.com
Source: first published by the 311 Institute on 30 July 2018. Cite as: Griffin, M. (2018). Aston Martin unveils its first stunning flying car concept. 311 Institute. https://www.311institute.com/aston-martin-unveils-its-first-stunning-flying-car-concept/
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