Finally got around to reading the Economist article, “What Happened to the Flying Car?” An excerpt about a couple of such vehicles close to the market:

“The Transition is being aimed at pilots who want to be able to drive to the airport and take off without changing vehicles, or land at a distant airport and not be stranded. As its name implies, it is intended to be a transitional product, a step on the way to true sky cars capable of taking off and landing almost anywhere. Such aircraft will require the development of more efficient motors and better control systems, says Rob Bulaga, president of Trek Aerospace in Folsom, California, another company developing a flying car.

Trek is adapting a ‘personal aerial vehicle’ concept originally developed for DARPA, the research-funding agency of America’s Department of Defence, to create a civilian vehicle. This two-seater, the Tyrannos, has ducted propellers powered by petrol engines, with a battery backup. Although it has been possible to make such vehicles for decades, they are notoriously difficult to fly. ‘It’s just basic physics,’ says Mr Bulaga. ‘Any vehicle that takes off and lands vertically is unstable.’ To make it practical, computers are needed to make the constant tweaks required to achieve stable flight. Without them, even just hovering is like trying to stand on a beachball, he says.”

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A personal flying vehicle from Trek Aerospace: