Flying car set to take off within next three years

New York

THE first time Carl Dietrich brought his flying-car concept to the Experimental Aircraft Association's annual AirVenture gathering in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, he had only a video to show the aviation geeks who wandered by his modest stall. The following year, he brought the mock-up of a wing. Six years later, in July 2013, he was finally ready to fly the prototype.

As the announcer who introduced the Terrafugia Transition put it: "Ladies and gentlemen, this is one of the most incredible things we've seen, ever, here at Oshkosh. Twenty-five minutes ago, this was a street-legal automobile. Now, it's in the air."