A former Air Force F-15 pilot rolled out this personal aircraft yesterday, and he's calling it Icon A5. The $139,000 plane can take off and land on water or dry land, and has controls that are more like a car than an airplane. Fold up its wings and you can tow it on the road.

Expected to go on sale in 2010, the Icon has a 32-foot wingspan.

The Icon A5 fits right into the FAA's new Light Sport Aircraft category, restricted to flying in daylight under 10,000 feet with a top speed of 140 mph. It's easy enough to pilot — you only need about 20 hours of flight training.

Flying in this little pocket rocket got you scared? It's actually a whole lot safer than a personal helicopter — if you make a flying mistake, the Icon A5 has its own built-in parachute.

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"All civilizations become either spacefaring or extinct." -- Carl Sagan

I want one!

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"Too Soon from the Cave, Too Far from the Stars"

I would want one as well if I could use it to commute to work and back everyday.

But alas, it has no vertical take off.

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"All civilizations become either spacefaring or extinct." -- Carl Sagan

Wonder how much road you need. I have some great straight aways! Though I imagine the FAA or the local law would frown on me using the roads as landing strips.

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"Too Soon from the Cave, Too Far from the Stars"

'Ya think?

Reaching back in the Air & Space Magazine archive there was a good article on automated personal flight that sheds light on how some of these small aircraft might be used:

http://www.airspacemag.com/flight-today/podcopter.html