This Electric Flying Race Car Just Took Flight In Australia

• by Alex Lockey
• June 17, 2021
• 2 min read

© Credit to Alauda/Airspeeder

The Alauda Airspeeder Mk3 is an electric flying race car, set to compete in remotely piloted races later this year.

• Alauda’s craft flew for the first time in the South Australian desert.
• Proposed races will consist of up to 10 aircraft in a Formula One-style series.
• The Airspeeder Mk3 is currently manned by a pilot on the ground with a robot in the cockpit.

Meet the Alauda Airspeeder Mk3, a four-metre-long multicopter that has just taken flight in the South Australian desert for the very first time.

Thanks to approval from Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority, Alauda tested the unmanned Mk3 remotely.

Weighing in at 130kg, the vehicle itself has a better thrust-to-weight ratio than some of the world’s fastest fighter aircraft.

No small feat when you stop to think about it. Speed-wise, the Mk3 can travel up to 250km per hour.

Why did Alauda make the Airspeeder? Simple, to compete in races (Airspeeder EXA races, specifically) similar to the Formula One, only airborne. The cockpit of the Mk3 looks very similar to an F1 car, just without the wheels.

A giant drone is another way to describe the Alauda Airspeeder Mk3 to someone who’s never seen it.

The Airspeeder Mk3 can be piloted by a living pilot. For now, the multicopter is manned by a “telerobotic avatar.” In other words, a robot sits in the cockpit, linked to the real pilot on the ground.

According to Matthew Pearson, founder of Alauda Aerodynamics, when the pilot turns their head, so too does the robot.

Think Pacific Rim, minus the giant monsters.

If safety can be secured, then a shift to uncrewed races is entirely possible. In fact, it’s what the Airspeeder Mk3 was made for.

Is this what you imagined an electric car to look like? And will you be watching the Airspeeder EXA? Tell us on social media.

Alex Lockey

Alex likes aircraft a lot. Probably too much. After studying for his degree in Aeronautical Engineering, he started working in people services related to engineering and education. Yet, the allure of the skies keeps pulling him back in. Alex loves to focus on the emerging world of electrified flight, drone tech and the wider EV tech landscape. When he’s not penning a few pieces for E4TP, Alex mostly spends his time either with his young family or in his businesses. One day, he hopes to own his very own aircraft, preferably an electric one.

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