Star Wars Speeder Closer to Reality With New Scorpion 3 Hoverbike

Hoversurf’s Scorpion 3 hoverbike is racing to make everyone’s Star Wars dream a reality. Using four propeller blades, the Scorpion 3 hoverbike or manned quadcopter allows a rider to move and fly around at low altitudes similar to the famed speeder bike vehicles from Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.

For now, users can’t exactly travel at the same velocities as it is in the movies, not because of Empire imposed galactic speed limits but because of physics. It tops out at 30 miles per hour for now with an altitude of 33 feet. For the Scorpion single-seat 3 hoverbike to work, it has to be relatively lightweight as it has to carry the rider with up to 265lb capacity. Its batteries can keep the rider afloat for up to 27 minutes of ride time.

Taking cues from a dirt bike in terms of design and aesthetics, Hoversurf however designed the Scorpion 3 to be very nimble and durable as well.  For safety, it is also equipped with state of the art flight controllers, special logical programming and passive elements with computer aided speed and altitude limiting.

As the name implies, this is the third iteration of the project and the most “complete” looking prototype yet. The company has posted a trailer of it in action on their official YouTube page demonstrating its maneuverability.

Hoversurf also has other plans in the works including a Drone taxi similar to the solution being developed by Uber called Elevate. Hoversurf even claims that their Drone taxi project is ready to launch by 2018.