British Man Flying a Car from London to Timbuktu

The Adventure Blog is reporting that a British man is journeying from London to Timbuktu, Mali, in a flying car. Adventurer Neil Laughton took off yesterday for the long, and seemingly quite daring, trip in the world’s first bio-fueled flying car – the Parajet Skycar.

Laughton will travel through France, Spain, Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania and Mali to Timbuktu, returning home via Senegal in his flying car, which is actually a glorified dune buggy rigged with a para-sail and a large rear fan.

The Skycar can reach speeds on the ground of up to 108 mph. In less than three minutes, the SkyCar can become airborne, where it’s then capable of reaching altitudes of 15,000 feet (although it usually flies in the 2,000 to 3,000 foot range). Trips like this, which include crossing the heart of the Sahara and massive mountain ranges, are exactly what the Skycar was meant for. The car is street legal, designed to handle off-road conditions, and burns bio-fuel.

Laughton will drive the car (on the ground) whenever possible and is scheduled to fly over the Strait of Gibraltar, the Pyrenees, and the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. Apparently, flying the entire way isn’t in the cards, although Laughton may choose to add flight time to the trip if all goes well.

Following this adventure on the official website should prove interesting. You might even want to purchase a Skycar when they become available to the public (if you have $75,000 to spare that is).