The following story assumes that the inevitable has occurred and developers and
manufacturers make StrongMobiles available for you to buy, lease, rent and use.

You can imagine there are many people who wouldn't think of climbing aboard a small airplane,
but who would have no problems in getting into an aircar that looks, sounds, and feels like their own cars
(except for all those added instruments and controls on the dash).

For flying, you can fold the top half of the steering wheel back and down onto the lower half and see the panel better.
The top center display panel shows the area forward and downward during descent and approach via CCTV or * FLIR

Maybe you are an experienced pilot/aviator, or maybe you tried the usual flying and gave it up due to the
hassle and inconvenience, or, maybe you are a busy traveler and have been attracted to flying and
driving instead of only driving all day and some nights.
You looked over the website and then got a demo ride in a StrongMobile and then signed up as a launch customer
when you compared your current business travel with the advantages of using a Dragon. You bought or leased
a StrongMobile from your dealer or maybe it's in your organization's fleet. Maybe your StrongMobile has a
Commercial Off-The-Shelf, COTS, chassis from your favorite car manufacturer, with purpose-built airplane parts
from your favorite airplane manufacturer.
Perhaps you and your team of a dozen or so
Dragon Drivers have built your fleet of StrongMobiles from kits either at your team factory or at the regional
StrongMobile factory with quick-build set-ups.
Maybe your group has contracted with a custom builder to make some StrongMobiles.
You have been trained in the systems and operations and gotten
used to the people gawking at your 'jet car'. Now you have the freedom to simply get into your StrongMobile
at home or work and perform much of the pre-flight in your 'hangarage' out of
the weather, since it's less than twenty feet long and eight feet wide.
You do your flight planning, check for Temporary Flight Restrictions, "TFRs", on the web
at *TFRs, and with your Flight Service Station.
You can load your passenger and about 130 pounds of baggage or cargo or special purpose equipment.
If you're travelling light with no baggage, you and your passenger could weigh up 260 pounds each.
If you're travelling solo, you could flip up the right seat and load an extra 195 pounds in the unobstructed space available.

The system design recognizes that the majority of business trips, around 80%,
are made with only one or two people at a time. If your organization optimizes their travel system, you
may combine two StrongMobiles flying and driving together and provide for four people in a trip.

Perhaps you and your spouse have your own two-seat StrongMobiles so you can do your own things separately and,
whenever the occasion calls for both of you traveling to the same places, you can travel together with your kids.

If you're operating the four-seat StrongMobile, then you can load up two more passengers and their baggage,
or you can remove or flip up the rear seats and load up their equivalent in cargo, about 400 pounds.

You can drive with your companion or your cargo to your local airport or
organizational airstrip or private road, since you only need a quarter mile of runway.
You feel right at home, with the familiar conventional automobile controls and feeling.
You can do your engine checks as you drive and warm up the engine and cabin
(or cool it with the *Air Conditioning System).
You could file your *Flight Plan via cell phone with FAA at home before you leave.
You could use one of the electronic flight planning systems, such as *PocketFMS
Many of the thousands of public-use airports may be within ten to twenty miles
of your home base; perhaps you have access to the many private or corporate airstrips.
Eventually, you may use an Aircarport like this, nearby a business industrial park, or
entertainment or sports park. An application for it is at * FAA 7460-1

You can imagine that business users would have places for package delivery, such as UPS, FedEx, Rush, and so on.
The parallel STOL runways could accomodate hundreds of movements on a daily basis, with minimum conflicts.
You can see a video about obstructions at *airport video
When you arrive there in the run-up area, you can turn off the engine, then, like a magician,
push your StrongMobile FLY button to transform your car into an airplane.
You may hear the electrical actuators and motors humming and the solenoid
locks clicking into place, the wings spreading and unfolding, the tailplane spreading,
the flaps lowering, the wing bay doors closing, the rear bumper changing into a
streamlined fairing, and the front bumper raising, all in about one minute.
Now your StrongMobile is in the Duplex Mode configuration.
The "Magic" not only transforms the aircar from automobile into airplane,
but it also allows you, a car driver, to transform from car driver into pilot-aviator.
(You should do a walk-around inspection of the flight locks, just to make
absolutely sure that the green light on the FLY button is showing the truth.)
You move the gearshift lever into Neutral, then over to the Fan position to
engage the fan and re-start the engine and notice the jet breeze coming from the outlet nozzles.
You lower the rudder pedals and move the upper half of the steering wheel so you have a clear view of the
instruments and controls. You place your left hand on the throttle and line up for take-off.
You apply max power, engage the friction lock, and accelerate to take-off speed.
You place your feet on the rudder pedals and shift your right hand from the steering wheel to the center control stick.
When your airspeed indicates around 70 knots, you raise the nose and take off.
When you have your climb rate established, you can raise up the wheels and wing flaps.
When you see the green lights for the wheels and flaps UP to complete the magical
transformation from automobile to airplane, then you can trim your speed and
retard your power setting for climbing. When you reach your cruising altitude,
then you can re-trim your speed and reset your power for cruising.

The advantages of StrongMobile operation, with quick and easy transforming effort, become even more apparent
for cases where visits to multiple destinations are required, so-called 'round robins'. As an example, one may consider
shorter trips of, say, two hundred miles, visiting two or three destinations in one day. Some users may want to routinely
trade off the baggage capacity for fuel capacity so they could eliminate a refueling stop. There is space available
in the 50-gallon tank that could provide one hour more endurance than the standard 40 gallons.
For day trips with minimum baggage, the weight allowance may be used for king-size pilot and passenger.

Obviously, you could make an extended "Grand Tour" of several days.

When the work-week is done, you could use it for recreational travel.

OR Maybe you would prefer to charter a trip and have someone else do the operating for you.
Ditto for hiring a charter service with a chauffeur-pilot.
You could simply call up your charter taxi service or corporate transportation office and make arrangements.

OR maybe you need to make a long-distance trip from an airline hub; you could fly to a small airport nearby,
drive to the hub airport, park your aircar there, and fly on the airline. You could do the reverse when you get back.

OR Maybe you have to move a few hundred pounds of urgent cargo a few hundred miles.
The seats may be made to be stowable or removable and replaced with containers for cargo.

OR Maybe you and your companions want to drive and fly your Dragon for the sheer enjoyment of
dancing with the winds and enjoying the bird's-eye views, as you expand your day-trip neighborhood beyond the airport gates
to experience high flight in the wild blue yonder.

In general, you can plan your trip for various situations:
Plan A - VFR or IFR direct without problems [probability of 80%, average 140 mph]; or
Plan B - weather or TFR deviations of less than one hour [probability of 15%, 120 mph]; or
Plan C - deviations of more than one hour, but less than two hours [probability of 3%, 90 mph]; or
Plan D - Driving only [probability of about 2%, 50 mph], or
Plan E - Airports and Roads closed [probability of less than 1%], or
Plan F - Aborted trip en route and overnight or more delay [probability of less than 1%].

OR You can make local trips on the roads and highways, when it's more convenient to simply drive your Dragon.

A very thorough review of the flyable car scenario may be viewed at Lionel Salisbury's * Roadable Times

A brief review of current contenders by Rich Smith is at *Symscape

This item was picked up from the *GIZMAG site:
November 21, 2004
Adults may dismiss flying cars as the stuff of science fiction,
but for children, according to a new survey released by Honda,
only a flying car will do. Gizmag readers, of course, know that
such vehicles are already in development and that by the time
many of the children surveyed here are old enough to drive,
flying cars will be a common sight.
When Honda's UK arm conducted the survey, which asked children:
"If your car could do anything, what would it do?",
an overriding number (43%) wanted it to be able to fly.
The company commissioned the survey into what children expect
as it launched the new family-friendly Honda FR-V.
Over 400 children, 90% of whom were under the age of 10, gave some
fascinating insights into the next generation of standard specifications.
Maybe some toy manufacturers will make toy Strongmobiles for the kids?

* BACK TO CONTENTS MENU

Background

The StrongMobile AirCar Transport System, SMACTS, is intended initially for frequent, regional VIP
business travellers. It is expected to be quicker, quieter, more cost-effective, more convenient, and safer with
more freedom and less hassle than other current systems. The SMACTS is based upon the StrongMobile
as the vehicle subsystem that could fit into the existing aeronautical and highway systems.
StrongMobile operators are free to select their schedules and routes to suit their own requirements, without
wasting time to change modes from road to air travel and vice versa.
Instead ofcoping with airport terminals or hangars, they can simply transform
from one mode to another with the push of their Magic button.
The main objective is to provide maximum value to society, that is, production of units,
annual seat-miles of travel, travel time avoided, accidents avoided, and enhanced qualities of life.
StrongMobile operators can open the doors to many trips that are beyond their reach with traditional ways.
The shortest distance between two places avoids wasting time and fuel.

The inventor, *Rich Strong, retired Air Force Command Pilot and Aerospace Engineer,
has been developing the design for over fifty years in his spare time.
He will welcome any developers to take over the lead of the project for the next phase
of designing and building and testing the prototype and production versions of the
StrongMobiles for a potential market of thousands of operators who could avoid millions
of wasted hours while driving and changing modes and a billion-dollar industry.
A developer may act as system integrator and work with sub-contractor/partners who develop the
various subsystems, such as: chassis, suspension, power train, interior, flight surfaces, and so on.

You can estimate that, for each hour that you spend flying, you can save an hour, compared to driving.
You can also estimate that you can extend your driving distance by flying twice as fast to go twice
as far in the same time, so you can expand your territory by a factor of four times as extensive.
The wrap-around cost plus profit of typically $100 per hour for each of the two
pilots flying about 1,000 hours per year will more than pay for the cost of the StrongMobile in
a little over one year of use, so the net overall expense is revenue neutral. After the payback period,
the StrongMobile becomes a tool for increasing revenues and profits. Organizations that acquire
their StrongMobiles on a lease basis may realize benefits within a few months.
Many government organizations will undoubtedly find various uses for StrongMobiles, including defense.
Organizations may operate fleets to provide charter transportation for employees and clients.
Export markets will undoubtedly be valuable and further increase potential sales and uses.

As development and production for business travelers proceed and start-up costs are amortized,
investors and manufacturers may choose to expand markets by cutting prices, so
other aircar users, such as commuters and recreational travelers, may enjoy operating StrongMobiles.

However, even though thousands of people have seen presentations by the inventor at professional
meetings or have visited the website, no potential developers have contacted the inventor.

You should note that the basic patents, 2,923,494 and 3,612,440, have long since expired and that all of
the patent information on this website is in the public domain, so anyone may use it.
The actual text and sketches are copyrighted, so you should request permission to copy.
(However, there is much that is not included herein; the inventor would be pleased to provide consultant service.)

While many travelers may be contented with driving their cars on short trips and using airliners for long trips,
many others will feel that they are still lacking an efficient way of travelling routine medium trips. Many, if not most, pilots
must be content with renting or leasing an airplane to fly and then renting a car at the destination. As one wag said it,
"Airplanes can take you from a place where you don't want to be to another place where you don't want to be.".

A realtor website *realtor website reports: "....A recent study by the National Association of REALTORS® concluded that a major factor in selecting a home was commuting distance from work. So where would people choose to live if they could travel 150 to 300 miles in an hour? Would they live in different states from their employers, different countries, or settle in remote areas? If so, would real estate develop into a global system to span the vast distances that clients were able to travel? Would fluency in multiple languages be the norm? Perhaps we would see droves of workers from New York shunning the high prices of tiny Manhattan apartments in favor of large houses in the wide open spaces of Montana. And how will this impact the homes themselves? Today's homebuyers often covet multi-car garages, or for the very wealthy, a heliport. If flying cars were to become mainstream, extra-wide garages and driveways ... might become the next must-have features in new homes...."

Likewise, business industrial parks may benefit from having an aircarport nearby.

The high cost and inconvenience of flying airplanes discourages potential airplane owners and pilots who would
prefer to use an attractive, reasonable, and practical aircar. Much of the inconvenience has been designed out of the
StrongMobile aircars, such as dealing with tie-downs, wheel chocks, using step-stools to check fuel, using steps and
handholds for entry and exit, only one cabin door, noisy too-narrow cabins with no air, steering with feet, left and right
brake pedals, anxiety about rough landings, towbars and towing machines, elaborate engine displays and controls,
and so on, and that lethal propeller spinning around.

You might be wondering what a pure airplane version of a Magic Dragon would be like.
You can imagine removing the road drive from a StrongMobile, along with the transaxle.
The removal would avoid the cost and weight to the tune of several thousand dollars and
about 300 pounds. The bumper-tail would be unnecessary, so that could be simplified to
save or avoid more cost and weight.
The wing could be simplified to eliminate the stowage and be made fixed;
this would also eliminate the wing bay stowage door magic. Ditto the tailplane tip magic.
The fan clutch can be replaced with a simple direct drive.
So, the end result would be a very nice airplane.

Looking at Simplifying Obsolete Aviation Practices, "SOAP to cleanup messy chores", much of this inconvenience could be
eliminated easily. (Question: When was the last time you checked for water in your car's fuel system?
Answer: Never, the fuel has additives to absorb the water.)
The other side of the coin also has drawbacks, as in * Dragon Driver Ditty , where the perils
of bad weather are contrasted to the perils of the highways (impaired drivers, obstacles,
and so on), to be sung to the tune of "If you're happy...clap your hands.

The modern highway system is equivalent to a modern Utopia where one size fits all, regardless of the individual
requirements of travelers. Given the biological limits of humans, such as the need for rest stops and sleep, and the
available modes of transport, the distances to be traversed within those limits oftentimes do not permit reasonable travel.
Many potentially valuable and desirable trips are simply not made, but could be made with a StrongMobile

In the past, about a hundred different designs for "roadable airplanes" or "flying cars" have been patented;
a few were built and operated. However, they required rather awkward and time-consuming ways to transform from car to
plane and vice versa. Most of them left their wings and tail at the airport, while others dragged them behind as trailers.
In contrast to a 'roadable airplane', the inventor defines an 'aircar' as a fully integrated airplane and automobile, with
automatic transformation. Details of the "magic" are described in * Preliminary Design.

At a recent meeting of several aircar developers led by Stephen Cook of C.F.C. LLC near Detroit,
the host, Alexander "Sandy" Munro, asked why they thought the time was ripe for aircars. The inventor replied that
the availability of technology such as low-cost, high power, lightweight, fuel efficient engines opened doors; others mentioned
the increasing need for door-to-door regional travel. This inventor was gratified to hear Sandy remark,
after viewing the various presentations, that the Dragon was the only crashworthy design .

The * SYSTEM MANAGEMENT PLAN provides for bringing a new group of people into aviation,
rather than relying only on the traditional group. However, it should be mentioned that the automotive and aeronautical
industries in the U.S.A. appear to be highly specialized nowadays and seem reluctant to engage in producing vehicles
that require "cross-over" technologies, such as aircars, due to regulatory restrictions and liability concerns. Of course, as a
Professional Engineer specializing in System Safety, the inventor intends to comply with the regulations.
[ * Motor Vehicle Safety Standards and * Federal Aviation Regulations]
More on this is at: * Safety, Risk Management, and Legal Aspects;

The observation that traditional vehicle makers show such little interest in aircars may be a blessing in disguise,
since it reduces the competition for the fresh start-up business. Therefore, it's more likely that far-sighted entrepreneurs will
lead the production, particularly in foreign countries. Perhaps the military will see a potential for using a general-purpose
utility vehicle for liaison, as a "Dual-Use Program", thus providing for a valuable defense asset while satisfying a viable
civilian market. Until such time as developers emerge, the main activity will continue to be concentrated on the website
program. Responses to the TACRA survey may identify both potential kit builders and users and potential factory-built
Dragon buyers. The inventor recognizes the simple fact, based on the current indications, that the survey results may
indicate a non-zero probability of an empty set, that is, there may not be a viable market for aircars after all.

Thomas Kuhn wrote about the paradigm shift process in his book, * THE STRUCTURE OF SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION,
wherein he describes how people first reject a new idea (denial), then oppose change (delusion), and finally, when the idea
succeeds, say that they knew all along that it was a good idea. One may assume that StrongMobiles will follow the
same process.

Therefore, in view of the success of the home-built kit movement, it seems only logical that the initial
cadre will be composed of folks who would make their own Dragons, either by themselves or in teams. Reports indicate that
there have been no liability lawsuits for homebuilt aircraft, since the builders assume the liability for their creations.
The advantage of this would be that many minds working together will come up with better products.

For more background, read * History

Back to * MENU

A Typical Operation

When people ask, "What will a StrongMobile do for me?", the inventor's answer is in terms of the design specifications for
making a medium-range day trip. Annual utilization is envisioned as 1,000 flight hours, flying 20 hours on three days per
week, plus monthly weekend vacation trips. The road mileage is estimated as a dozen or so twenty-mile trips per week, for
an annual milage of about 12,000 miles. You can compare it to making an automobile trip in the same times
covering less distance. Some operators might fly as much as twice this.

The graphic shows cumulative minutes on the left abscissa.

The standard StrongMobile trip is defined as a one-day 500-mile radius combination of road and flight modes in phases:

1. [ 7:30] Pre-planning in road mode and inspection at home;
2. [ 8:00] Drive to home airport;
3. [ 8:30] Transformation from road to flight mode (pre-flight checks);
4. [ 8:35] Flight to destination airport and refuel (140 knots true/161 mph for about 420 nautical miles;
(With an average wind at cruising altitude of 6,000 feet of about 20 knots, the actual groundspeed for a round trip would be
about 155 mph, for a 30-knot wind, GS would be 148 mph, and so on.)
5. [11:40] Transformation to road mode;
6. [11:45] Drive to business destination;
7. [12:15] (Lunch) Conduct business or recreation for a couple of hours;
8. [14:15] Drive to destination airport and refuel;
9. [14:50] Transformation to flight mode;
10. [14:55] Flight to home airport;
11. [17:55] Transformation to road mode and refuel; and
12. [18:00] Drive to home by 18:30.

THE STRONGMOBILE IS IDEAL FOR TRIPS WITH MULTIPLE DESTINATIONS AND TRANSFORMATIONS,
SUCH AS A ROUND ROBIN WITH TWO OR THREE DESTINATIONS..

• 1. [ 7:30] Pre-planning and inspection at home;
• 2. [ 8:00] Drive to home airport and Transform;
• 3. [ 8:35] Fly to destination A airport 140 KTAS for 210 air miles;
• 4. [10:05] Transform and drive to destination A;
• 5. [10:40] Conduct business or recreation for 1 hour;
• 6. [11:40] Drive to destination A airport and refuel and Transform;
• 7. [12:15] Fly to destination B airport 140 KTAS for 210 air miles;
• 8. [13:45] Transform and drive to destination B;
• 9. [14:20] Conduct business or recreation for 1 hour;
• 10. [15:20] Drive to destination B airport and refuel and Transform;
• 11. [15:55] Fly to home airport 140 KTAS for 210 air miles;
• 12. [17:25] Transform to road mode and refuel; and
• 13. [18:00] Drive to home in time for supper.

Many trips that cannot be done within schedule and budget constraints
with non-aircar technology may be made easily with StrongMobiles.

For longer flights, such as overnight, or 3-day trips, insert refueling stops between steps
4 and 5 and again between steps 9 and 10. The fuel tanks can hold 40 gallons, for an
endurance of five hours at a 8 gal/hr burn rate.

For comparisons of various modes of travel, you may go to * Triptimes or
download an Excel spreadsheet and do your own comparisons at * Tripcalcs

Looking at it from another viewpoint, users may use the same time and extend
their range of operations. As an example, if one spends six hours a day in travelling
by car to go on a 180-mile round trip, then he or she could extend the range to
a round trip of over 420 miles, with reserves. The operating area is thereby quadrupled.

According to K. P. Rice, quoted in ROADABLE TIMES, "Statistics indicate that the average pilot
does not fly enough to maintain proficiency in all types of weather. However, with a flying
car, the pilot can drive to the airport, take off, fly up to the edge of a weather system, land,
drive to the other side of it, continue flight to his destination airport, and then drive the car
to his final destination." Magic Drivers may use combination trips to have flexibility in
selecting airports with flyable weather at any step in their travel plans.

A comparison of environmental impact in terms of fuel between travelling by Dragon
or by car and faster airplane, where the Dragon takes five minutes to convert and the
car and plane takes a half hour to change shows another benefit. For the same
door-to-door time, the Dragon saves time in conversion with a little electrical energy
versus the faster airplane that burns much more fuel to save the same time.
It's like the old fable of the race between the hare and the tortoise or the
current "hurry up and wait" comments. As an example, for the typical trip
described above, the Dragon at 140 and the fast airplane at 200, the
power required increases dramatically. The standard calculation shows the difference
as about [200/140]exp5 = about SIX TIMES as much power required, with a
corresponding increase in fuel usage.

As progress continues in both the automotive and aviation fields, interest in
vehicles that can be used in both areas continues. Automobiles are becoming
lighter in weight, more efficient in propulsion, and more aerodynamic in shape.
Airplanes are becoming easier to fly, more efficient, and easier to navigate.
While the Interstate highway system is expected to provide a convenient
means for travelling between many areas during the next 20 to 40 years,
there will still be many other areas that remain hard-to-connect and/or require
long driving times. Furthermore, congestion on metropolitan freeways
continues to grow, so the 'cross-town' commute between suburbs calls for
problem-solving.

The main purpose of the Magic Dragon aircar is to provide a single vehicle for
personal and business door-to-door transportation. In addition, the
recreational value as a sport vehicle is appealing to many of us.
The underlying theme of the aircar is to trade off the high cruise speed of
the fast small aircraft for quicker and more convenient trips by reducing the
time lost in changing from automobile to airplane and vice versa. Likewise,
the aircar trades off the typical automobile's capacity for airplane
components. A typical round-trip day trip with a radius of 420 miles to
destination is figured to take the same time via Magic Dragon aircar cruising at
140 knots as with a 200 knot airplane or 500 knot airliner, due to the time
savings for conversion from road to air and vice versa. The figures are in a
spreadsheet and chart at *Trip Time Comparisons.

For a comparison with driving six days a week for a maximum usage, using an
aircar would save 4 hours per trip, times 300 trips = 1,200 hours per years.
This allows for week-end recreational flying, maintenance, and weather,
assuming that the pilot is instrument rated. Assuming a load factor where
40% of the trips are by the pilot only and 60% include a passenger, for a
factor of 1.6, this gives 1,920 hours per year. Figuring the value of the users
at about $100 per hour, the savings amount to about $192,000 per year
(less maintenance such as engine overhaul) as compared to driving. From this,
one should subtract maintenance such as engine overhaul and the difference
in fuel costs. Maintenance such as engine biennial overhaul may be estimated
at about $40,000. One may assume a fuel cost of $3 per gallon for aviation fuel or
premium automotive fuel, fuel burn rates of 2 gallons per hour while driving
and 7 gallons per hour for flying. This results in $6 per hour for driving and
$21 per hour for flying. Fuel costs for driving would be 10 hours at $3 per hour,
or $30. Fuel costs for flying would be 6 hours at $30 per hour, or $180.
The difference would then be $150 per round trip. The annual fuel cost
difference would then be $150 times 300 trips, or $45,000. This would then
result in a net savings of $192,000 - $40,000 - $45,000 = $107,000.
The value of the time savings would quickly provide recouping the investment
in leasing or buying an aircar in about two years.
The underlying benefit of business opportunities should also be considered.
The aircar may replace the automobile to a large degree, saving on that expense.
Your StrongMobile expenses may qualify for tax reductions; AOPA has info
about this on its website at *AOPA Business Tax Info

The ultimate benefits are that the aircar provides: an increased radius of travel
for business; or shorter workdays to provide more personal quality time; or
more time for vacation travel. You can figure out the times for your trips and
see how much time you would save if you used an aircar instead of only driving
your automobile. You can work out the cost comparisons for an aircar versus
a combination of a car and a plane. Needless to say, there are many obvious
side benefits to having an aircar instead of constantly switching from car to
airplane and vice versa. The pure recreational benefits of using an aircar are
a bonus. Development and production of the StrongMobile aircar is
considered to be a viable enterprise that would satisfy a niche market and
provide a profitable venture for an extensive period of time. Ultimately, this
may involve several thousands of aircars in use within several years.
The StrongMobile is considered to be a viable candidate for the flight trainer
market, even without any road drive, because it can provide a introduction
to flying with a familiar setup similar to a conventional automobile.

If you routinely fly on one-day trips where you do not need the baggage capacity,
then you can have an auxiliary fuel tank installed, so you can go out and back
without stopping to refuel.

* BACK TO CONTENTS MENU

The StrongMobile Aircars

The inventor's background as a worker in the automobile industry, as an aircraft mechanic in the Naval Air Reserve,
as a Command Pilot and Aerospace Engineer in the Air Force, and as an instrument rated Commercial Pilot gives him a
broad view of the personal transportation scenario.
The development story is described at * History

When the inventor was studying Aero Engineering, his instructor, Ed Lesher (world lightplane speed record holder)
admonished students to "distort the specifications", that is, design something different. This inventor, having been born
and raised in Detroit, chose to emphasize the potential production quantity as the primary driver. His preliminary design of
an aircar was graded "A+". The design was the basis for the second patent, #3612440, the predecessor of the StrongMobile.
The inventor then decided to improve the design to incorporate a complete automobile aspect, rather than
being limitted to a roadable airplane design. This change required many redesigns to accomodate the
additional weight of COTS automotive components.
The design was re-named "Magic Dragon".
(Not to be confused with the non-magical deHavailland/Hawker/Beech DH125 "Jet Dragon", nor the "Sky Dragon" blimp.)
Several folks asked the inventor why he calls the mock-up of the StrongMobile the 'Magic Dragon'.
He explained that, since all of the more obvious names had already been used previously by others,
he recognized that the fanjet blows out of the gills and flying dragons are the only critters that have four legs and wings.,
so he decided to call it "Puff, the Magic Dragon".
Persons who operate the Dragons may think of themselves as "Dragon Drivers" or "Dragon Masters".

The sketches at "Current Design Views" show the license and registration as "N142MD"; the "142" sums up the essence
of the StrongMobile as one "1" vehicle for "4" two "2" modes of travelling, both driving and flying, without any changing of
seats or baggage from one vehicle to another and back again. Likewise, the StrongMobile logo, in the form of an Oriental
ouri-bouri symbol, shows the flying and rolling modes working together as a system, where there are some flying aspects
in the rolling and vice versa.

The main design desiderata for the Magic Dragon are that it should be simple, safe, convenient, and attractive.
The last item is considered to be a parameter that is impossible for the designer to measure, since, like beauty,
this is in the mind of the potential users.
"Handsome is as handsome does" seems to be appropriate.
As an example, the StrongMobile half-scale model has brought out
exclamations of "Way Cool!- Good Luck!" from the many folks who have seen it.

While the true beauty of the StrongMobiles can only be experienced in actual operation, the design that
provides the operation is very unique.

Briefly, a two-seat StrongMobile trades the two rear seats of a typical automobile for its flight components,
or, said another way, it trades the two seats of a four-seat airplane for the added weight of the road components.
In the same way, the four-seat version trades off two seats of a six-seat airplane for road components or two seats of a
six-seat automobile for aircraft components. Thus, the users can pay just as much cost and burn twice the gas to carry
half the payload in half the time, with freedom to choose their own times and places and door-to-door convenience.
(Note: at about 20 m.p.g; no data is available for cars m.p.g. at 160 m.p.h. for comparison.
Can you imagine driving on an Interstate Highway at 160 miles per hour?!)

While it's relatively simple to set down the desired performance, the task of designing a machine that has a good chance
of achieving this performance is quite another thing. (Even though the inventor was a member of Mensa and Intertel,
and had the help of many mentors stretching back to the beginnings of inventing, the design has been under study for
several decades on a spare time basis, due to the problems involved.)

The main features of the Magic Dragon are that:
1) it is a fully integrated automobile and airplane that carries its wings and tail with it; and
2) transformation between airplane and automobile modes may be done with a push of a button, like magic.

Engine and road drive design is driven by the requirement for heavy-duty 'workhorse' operation with high availability
and minimum maintenance. The use of converted automobile engines and drive trains that can go for 100,000 miles
between scheduled maintenance actions (other than Lube, Oil, and Filter) is highly desired for maximum availability.

The propulsion controls and instruments are simplified to eliminate traditional aircraft items such as magneto switches,
mixture controls, primer controls, propeller pitch controls, carburetor heat, cowl flap controls, and so on.
There are two choices of Subaru conversions, * Eggenfellner and * Crossflow
Mr. Eggenfellner has replied to the inventor's query about suitability of his
engines for StrongMobiles and replied that they would "fit nicely."
Another candidate might be a Diesel engine that would provide reduced fuel fire hazard and
greater efficiency, such as the *Delta Hawk
Other more powerful potential engines for the four-seat StrongMobiles are the *Vesta LS1/2 conversions.
Other automobile engine conversions are described at *CONTACT! magazine

The ducted fan is bifurcated to exhaust along the sides of the body and the wing root, so
the top and bottom of the body are not exposed to the jetwash and so have less drag.
You can see that the 3' x 5' "bellmouth" maw provides the equivalent of a 4' diameter duct;
the fan will reduce the static pressure on the maw and so increase the net thrust.
(If this creates unacceptable fan vibrations, then a more circular design may be used.)

The fan may be adapted or custom-made COTS by manufacturers such as * AeroComposites.

The enclosed fan is expected to reduce the noise level from about
107 pndB for a conventional propeller to about 70 pndB.
A conventional off-the-shelf automotive muffler system will be used.

An adapter from the engine to the fan and the road drive shaft is required and must be developed. The drive train uses
a drive shaft from the engine to the rear wheels transaxle.
The Subaru engine drives all four wheels; the front wheel drive may be disconnected to save weight.
An alternative is the Corvette transaxle, which has an excellent record, costs about $3,000, and weighs about 250 pounds.
Similar mechanisms may be adequate.

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Current StrongMobile Design 3-Views & Data Sheets

The following sketches display the basic Magic Dragon and several specialized variants.

Shorter Take-Off & Landing versions are feasible for those who desire more utility.

Operators may choose to use two Dragons for many jobs that require four seat capacity
or use the four-seat version; however, the design and development of the four-seat version
is considered to be a challenging venture.
For those who need more capacity, a six-cylinder, four-seat stretched version may satisfy.

Those who have a need for speed may like the SpeeDragon concept.

For the ultimate concept, a six-place limousine/camper/cargo version.

A variant was conceived for the *Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's Transformer Project
that incorporated wing-mounted lift fans, as with the *Trek fan to achieve VTOL performance.
DARPA desire is to power the fans electrically with ring-type motors,
rather than pneumatically, as was done in the unsuccessful Ryan XV-5 * Vertifan ; and the *Rockwell XFV-12 .
However, the electrical power system required may be problematical.

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Business Plan & Financial Model for Full-Scale Production

The plan is to reach out to a non-legacy broad market composed of organizational
users who need to travel regionally and frequently, about two-thirds of buyers.
The production plan is to first make high-end versions (flagship class) for maximum
value and investment pay-off, then make lower priced models.

When people ask, "How much will a Magic Dragon cost to build and own and operate?",
the honest answer is,"Whatever people are willing to pay for it.".
A rough estimate for a basic home-built version, individually or group-built
for a fleet, is about $90,000, with the cost of the engine and
power subsystems accounting for the lion's share.
Buying a factory-built Magic Dragon may cost twice as much
to pay for labor and overhead, with savings in scale.
Of course, an aircar inherently is an automobile, so this must be factored into the cost
equation, since it avoids the cost of an automobile. The savings in travel time and convenience
and extension of travel range would exceed the cost for many owners, renters, or leasers.
Insurance costs may be lower, due to the safety features described at * Safety, Risk Management, and Legal Aspects.

One may assume Magic Dragon life cycle of 10 years; calculations are for 10 years at 1,000 flight hours and
10,000 road miles per year. For business use, owners may expense the cost of leasing or owning and operating their Dragons.

With a service life of about ten years, the components for transformation should be designed for about 10,000 cycles.

Kit builders may plan on investing a few hundred dollars per week over a period of a few years of part-time
work. As an example, they may spend an average of $400 per week over three years, for a total of about $60,000,
while working an average of about twenty hours per week. The Dragon Lair central kit factory may provide the chassis
and suspension with the power subsystems, including transaxle and fan.

Investors/prospective buyers would be informed of TACRA survey results regarding prices for manufactured or kit Dragons.
During the survey period, a concurrent cost analysis may be done to determine the required funding; when the investment
required and the survey match, the program light will turn green. As an example, "Plan A" would involve 1,000 Dragoneers
willing to deposit 10% of the price toward development, with a guaranteed delivery price of $190K for a manufactured and
certified basic Magic Dragon. "Plan B" might involve 1,000 Dragoneers willing to deposit 10% each for a guaranteed
delivery price of $145K for a kit they would build on the 51% rule, without certification.

The finances of the three main players in the buying or leasing scenario are described below.

MANUFACTURER:
Develops aircar - borrows/invests $20M for engineering, tooling;
Sets up plant, human resources, suppliers, insurers for production;
Produces 2,000 units per year at unit cost of $95,000;
Produces parts for maintenance and repair;
Sells aircars and parts for 30% profit ($30,000) for $125,000 for 2,000 units;
Sets up dealer/buyer financing at 10%, earning 10%-prime rate of ~6%; and
pays off loan at $ 50M/yr for 5 years.

DEALER/LESSOR:
Sets up sales and service, training, and leasing;
Purchases X aircars for $125,000 each at 8% interest for 20 years with monthly payments of ~$2,000X;
Leases aircars for 100 hours per month, 1,000 hours per year, at $200 per flight hour;
Pays operation and maintenance costs of $75 per hour $7,500 per month each;
Pays for facility, employees, etc. ~$4,000 per month spread over X;
Earns profit of $15,000 - $7,500 - $2,000 - $4,000 = $1,500 per month each;
Performs service/maintenance/repair as required; and
Operates training center and charter-taxi services.
Sells outright Y aircars for 20% profit ($25,000 each) at $150,000.

OWNER/LESSEE:
-Users cost $100 per hour each of two, operate flying 6+ hours per day, 25 hours per week, 100 hours per month;
-Owner buys aircar on $150,000, 10-year 6% loan for $3,000 per month;
-Owner pays fuel, maintenance, insurance of $125/hr for 100 hrs, $12,500/mo;
-Owner avoids user costs of $200/hr for 100 hrs, $20,000/month (net cost avoidance of $4,500/mo);
-Lessee leases for $200 per hour to lessees ("wet"); or
-Cost avoidance of $200 per hour for each flight hour, based on typical trips, $20,000 per month, saving
=$20,000 - $20,000 lease cost = $00 per month net cost.

As an alternative, development, test and evaluation, and production may be done by a group of Makers:
Lead Develops aircar - invests $20M @ 12% for 20 years startup with $1M from 20 makers;
Makers produce 100 units per year at unit cost of $75K, ( ~$7.5 M), earning $10k per unit, repay $1M;
Produce parts for maintenance and repair and accessories;
Sells units and parts for 15% net after-tax profit (~$1.5 M); and
Sets up dealer/buyer financing at 10%, earning 10%-prime rate of ~6%.

Several co-owner organizations or individuals could time-share use of their StrongMobiles and share expenses.

Other factors such as prestige, business opportunities, quality of life for users should also be considered.

After production of the two-seat version gets underway, the manufacturer may wish to pay off the start-up loan or
go into development of the four-seat version. When the loans are paid off and production ramps up, then the market may be
ripe for lower-priced versions for a broader market.

One last comment about patents and intellectual property. Although it may seem questionable, the inventor looks at it
this way. He has published most of the changes to his last patent on the web and in professional publications, such as
an *SAE paper, to make sure the invention is in the public domain so that the changes cannot be patented by anyone else
and so block progress. He realizes that investors would prefer to have exclusivity; however, he feels that it's more important
for many to compete on the basis of merit, rather than assuring one party large profits. So, anyone may feel free to use
any of the features that he has published, with attribution to www.strongware.com.

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The 'Magic Dragon' Aircar Development Project

Designing the 'Magic Dragon' aircar prototype is a personal "labor of love" work in progress.
The project is personally funded by the inventor at a $5K per year level. The design was begun several decades ago
and improvements are made daily. The design is now considered to be mature enough to proceed with prototype
development. The information provided here
is offered so that individuals, groups, or organizations who are interested in building their own Magic Dragons can
participate in forming a cadre for further development. The Air-Car Research Association, TACRA, was
established in 2005, so anyone can join by sending an application at *Associate Application.
As of summer 2009, nobody has joined TACRA.

Currently, work is concentrated on showing the full-size mockup fotos at various meetings.

One may assume that there are many folks who are not only curious about aircars, but actually would buy or
lease and use them if they were available. However, production by a manufacturer is controversial
because of the potential for liability litigation. The StrongMobile Development Program is intended to
provide an alternative way for Dragon Drivers to construct their aircars as amateur-built aircraft, with
plans and parts to be made available, in about three person-years of effort. Initially, a group of builders
may organize as a "Lead Cadre" to build two or three or more Dragons, on a co-owner basis.
Their organization may be formalized as a non-profit charitable organization. Some Dragons may be
built for personal use and some more to sell or lease to others and so pay for the personal Dragons.
A network of Dragoneer Centers with facilities for parts and kits, building, and testing
may be developed. Later on, the Centers may be used for training, rentals and leasing, and servicing.
Franchises may be used in cooperative information-sharing and specialized building. Some teams
may grow into production factories, doing purchasing and distributing, sub-assembly, and parts
for others. Eventually, some teams may build Dragons for resale and become manufacturers.

Development and production of the "Magic Dragon" aircar is considered to be a viable enterprise
that would satisfy a niche market and provide a profitable venture for an extensive period of time.
This may involve a planned operational use of, say, 10,000 Dragons in about 10 years, 20,000 in operation
within 15 years, and,ultimately, tens of thousands of aircars in use within 20 years. Within a decade,
FAA type certification may be obtained to allow charter/taxi or othercommercial use.
There may be many other applications that may be done better with StrongMobiles,
such as defense liaison as a dual use program. Others may include high-urgency cargo.

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The Full-Scale Mock-Up Model

Work on the full-size mock-up model is complete. After building the half-scale model and displaying
it to the public directly and in various publications and presentations and gaining confidence in the general acceptance of
the Magic Dragon design, the full-size model construction was begun. The barn was built in 2001 and 2002 to house the
mock-up model, at a cost of about $5,000 and a year of work. The decision to omit any power in the mock-up model was
made to shorten the build time and avoid costs, with the main goal of presenting the overall model to the travelling public
and potential developers as soon as practical. Much more detail and realism are built into the full-size Magic Dragon model,
such as the Chevy Geo Metro suspension and rack and pinion steering, seats and steering wheel, and the movable flight
surfaces. The mock-up was and is very useful for defining and refining the many dimensions, from both technical and general
acceptance viewpoints. Dimensions for the cabin were considered first, since people don't change much over time.
The control arrangement was checked out with simulated operation.
The design for using the steering wheel, brake pedal, and accelarator pedal only for driving and
the Joyce stick, rudder pedals, and throttle only for flying was verified,
so a minimum of re-training and change of habits is needed.
This emphasizes that the throttle controls rate of climb and
the stick (with elevator trim button) controls speed.

The semi-stowable steering wheel (1) is for driving. The center "T" stick (2) is for flying. Flight throttle (3) is on left door. Road gear shift (4) is for driving. Accelerator pedal and foot brake (5,6) are on the floor as usual. Rudder pedals (7) are stowable for driving.

The basic chassis framework was built first to provide a basis for the rest of the design.
Adapting and attaching of the automotive components, suspension, wheels, tires, and steering, steering wheel, and
seats from recycled compact car parts was done next. The fan, maw, and duct were mocked up and installed. The use
of composite materials (Bondo, reenforced screen) was built into the maw and duct. The cabin, seating (from recycled
compact car parts), doors, and controls seem comfortable. Glazing the windshield, side windows, and skylights were
relatively simple. Details such as safety belts and mirrors were added, along with cup holders. Throughout the
designing and building, close attention was paid to defining the dimensions and improving building skills, including
the sequence of construction. Many areas were brought to light, including the overall size and weight
(about 3,000 pounds). Lesson learned: the suspension needs to be bigger wheels (13" to 14") and stronger suspension.
Most of the skin construction consisted of flat or single-curvature panels, except for the intake maw and centerbody,
the outer duct walls, the windshield crown, the wingroot fairings, and the fairings at the top of the fins joining to the
tailplane. This implies that tooling costs for production will be lower, with man-hour estimates of 2,000 hours initially
decreasing to 1,000 hours with learning.

The high point of the project occurred when the model was rolled out of the barn and the wings were spread
and locked in place. All in all, the inventor is pleased with the mockup and spends many hours sitting in the cockpit,
simulating operations, including cross-wind take-offs and landings. (The inventor also verified the use of the left-hand
throttle and right-hand stick-yoke operation, similar to his experience flying the F-16 simulator.) He also checked visibility
and simulated enjoying the view from inside, and having a car steering wheel and looking out at the wings.

You are cordially invited to visit and view the mock-up model. Call, E-mail, or write Rich to make an appointment.

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SPREADING THE GOOD NEWS

Several activities introduced the Magic Dragon to the public in the past few years:

• The half-scale model was displayed in the 2002 4th of July "Parade of Planes" in the Dayton area;
• The model was displayed at the 2002 U.S. Air And Trade Show;
• Advertisements were published in EAA's SPORT AVIATION;
• A presentation was given at the EAA AirVenture 2000 and 2001;
• Feature articles were published by James Cummings in the DAYTON DAILY NEWS
  and by Brian Albrecht in the CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER;
• A presentation was made at the Engineers Club of Dayton's Barn Gang;
• The inventor spent much of the year 2001 constructing the "Dragon's Lair", a barn type of facility
  in which a full-scale mockup was to be built;
• The inventor was a guest on National Public Radio's TALK OF THE NATION on January 3rd for
  interview on the segment on futuristic cars;
• The inventor presented papers at the Society of Automotive Engineers conferences in March, 2002
  in Detroit, as part of a panel on Achieving Lighter Weight Vehicles, and in April in Wichita;
• The inventor presented for a Sigma Xi meeting at the General Motors Technical Center in June 2003;
• The inventor presented the slide show at the EAA AirVenture 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2005/6/7/8 Forums
  (audiotape is available from dcyeoman@juno.com ask for #5-5-8;
• Presentations were made at the AIAA/ICAS International Symposium in Dayton on July 14-17, 2003,
  as a poster session and at the EAA AirVenture on August 1st as a talk.
• MSNBC Science Editor Alan Boyle mentioned this website on his website in November 2003,
  resulting in over 1,000 requests above the usual 24 requests per day.
• Presentation was made to the Dayton-Cincinnati Section of AIAA in March 2004; and
• Poster exhibit and forum presentation were performed at AirVenture 2004.
• Poster exhibit and forum presentation were performed at Sun 'n Fun in 2005.
• This website has had over 10,000 hits from over 4,000 hosts and organizations; this includes
  several manufacturers, dozens of government organizations, including defense, dozens of universities, and
  over a hundred international organizations. You can view a partial listing of visitors at *Visitors

The website ISP reports that hundreds of Universities and School Districts have visited.

A sampling of 200 recent visitors show the distribution among those that are:
non-identifiable, business, academic, and governmental.

With about 30,000 requests over the past few years, a counter was installed on March 1st, 2006.
On average recently, around 800 visits are received monthly.
You can ignore the first '1' digit.

Rent DVDs

Several activities were accomplished in the 2005 year to inform folks about the Magic Dragon Project.

A presentation was given to the Dayton-Cincinnati Section of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Conference.

A slide show presentation was made at Sun n' Fun in April

A poster and videotape exhibit was shown at the AOPA Fly-In and Open House at Frederick MD in June, where a hundred or so folks picked up brochures, surveys, and CDs.

Monday, August 01, 2005
The Experimental Aircraft Association, EAA, * AirVenture ® 2005 was a truly big show,
with many thousands of people attending. My exhibit display site was very well located at an intersection of roads
leading to and from the show. I estimate about ten thousand people took a look while passing by and about a thousand
took photos of the Magic Dragon full-size mock-up model. Many were curious about what the placard announcing the
mock-up meant, so I explained it was a model preview of the future. Hundreds of viewers were very enthusiastic about
the project and the unique design of the Dragon. About a hundred or so visitors sat in the cockpit and wiggled the
steering wheel and flight controls; all were pleased with the roominess. Several news organizations sent reporters to
make photos and gather facts about it. A visitor wrote my son Ed, who is a NASA-JSC engineer-manager with a yen
for a Cozy, that "there was nothing like your father's exhibit anywhere else at EAA". He noticed there was someone
there every time he passed". One visitor remarked, "Looks like a fighter plane". One said the cockpit visibility was
poor; he was invited to check it out from the pilot's seat; he did, then said it was much better than he had imagined.
About a hundred visitors picked up PEP survey and member applications of the non-profit * Air Car Research Association.

. Several news organizations sent reporters to make photos and gather facts, such as * Aero News Network
with a repeat by Deidre Woollard in * Luxist .

The EAA Museum’s TIMELESS VOICES folks who interviewed the inventor at Sun n’ Fun were very impressed and the
AirVenture photographer made several photos.
Many visitors asked detailed questions about the technical aspects, such as the lifting body and the ducted fan.
Some of the frequently asked questions concerned the proposed engine, the make of the chassis, and performance.
Some visitors asked about the cost; I explained that the convenience of the Dragon would lead to higher production
and lower unit cost, about $140k. Overall, the exhibit was a resounding success in terms of verifying the acceptance of
the Dragon design and business scheme. Some discussed the investment potential for venture capitalists, bearing in
mind that the invention is in the public domain so anyone can make and use Magic Dragons. The forum presentation
also was very good. One attendee asked if the intended usage of 1,000 flight hours per year was correct, since it equated
to about three hours per day; I explained that the Dragon was intended to be a heavy-duty workhorse. One visitor
summed up his reaction when he said, "Now, this is the kind of new idea that we came to AirVenture to see."
(If a supply of certified Magic Dragons had been available, then many visitors said they would have
placed an order for them on the spot. )

AirVenture 2006/7/8 was minus the mockup model due to the inventor's recovery from a quadruple bypass operation;
however, forum presentations were made.
The AirVenture 2009 forum was scrubbed so the inventor could visit his grandson's birth.

The model is currently being stored.

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FEEDBACK AND CONTACT INFO

You can send Emails to * Rich Strong.

Who's Doing This?* Rich Strong's Curriculum Vitae

Contact Rich at 937-236-0361. Recording machines are used.

Before you send a fax, call the vox so fax can be enabled.

USPS address is: R. A. Strong, 7514 Belle Plaine Drive, Dayton OH 45424-3229

Copyright 2009 Richard Allen Strong. All rights reserved.

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