From vineyard to takeoff: Slovakia's flying car ready to soar

A flying car, built in Slovakia and certified for European skies, is set to enter full production in China. Behind the project are two Slovak men with very different backgrounds: a winemaker and an inventor.

Eduard Sebo, a tenth-generation winemaker from Modra, joined forces with Stefan Klein, a designer who has worked on flying vehicles for over 30 years.

"Mr. Klein told us about his family's story. He is a third-generation pilot. He has a big dream. And I also have a dream, and therefore, we are together in this," Sebo says.

The AirCar was born from that shared vision. Klein started designing it as a university project. It now exists as a working prototype that drives, flies, and transforms in less than two minutes.

"We are sitting on this prototype, which is smaller because it's meant only for me," says Klein. "In the production model, you will be able to put your legs down. It's an anthropometric model that we tested for dimensions from two meters to 160 centimeters."

In 2022, the European Aviation Safety Agency granted the AirCar a Certificate of Airworthiness. The vehicle completed over 200 successful test flights to earn that title.

The flying car is no longer science fiction. In under two minutes, the AirCar transforms: wings out, tail extends, engine roars, and it takes off. After cruising through the sky, it lands and drives off like any other car.

But turning the prototype into a commercial product needed more than flight skills. That's where Sebo came in. He used business contacts in China to help secure a licensing deal.

"I think that China has the power to finish this project and bring it to a commercial business," Klein says.

Production will begin early next year. The car will cost between $800,000 and $1 million. Makers are waiting on final clearance from the European Aviation Safety Agency for commercial use.

Once approved, it will operate under the same rules as small private planes. Klein says pilots will just call in their flight path and take off.

"You will be able to fly from your house to your destination, without a long preparation," he said.

The AirCar can land on roads or grass, making it flexible for different terrains.

For Klein and Sebo, the project proves that shared dreams – and cross-border cooperation – can lift new ideas off the ground.