I can’t be the only one who has doubts about the safety of this particular setup. The creator, an Australian (naturally) by the name of Chris Malloy, claims it’ll be able to fly at 173 MPH at 3000 feet. Yeah, I can see that — if you can get to that height without flipping over or falling off the thing after hitting a pocket of turbulent air.

Right now its testing seems to be largely theoretical, which is a nice way of saying he hasn’t let it out of his back yard or local parking lot yet. But based on its weight and power, he thinks it’ll go for an hour at 92 MPH. What about the possibility of accidental ejection? He’s hoping to add in parachutes and do something about those pesky exposed rotors.

Yeah, I wouldn’t take that thing to 3000 feet for a million bucks. But I look forward to hearing more about it. There’s a distinct lack of hoverbikes in my life.

[via Wired]