Associated Press
Ever wanted your very own personal flying machine? Now's your chance to get one, but you'll have to shell out some serious cash - and resist the urge to take it for a spin.
The SoloTrek XFV, which made its maiden "flight" in December 2001, is scheduled to go on sale Friday on eBay with a starting bid of about $50,000. Michael Moshier, chief executive of Trek Aerospace, the military-funded company designing the machine, expects the final price in the seven-day auction to exceed $1 million.
The prototype has only hovered a few feet off the ground in tests. But it is built to zoom up to 69 mph for 100 miles, carrying a person who weighs up to 180 pounds. Two overhead ducted fans lift the gas-powered machine, and a standing operator steers with a joystick in each hand.
"We didn't want to test it higher than we were willing to fall," Moshier said.
Engineers at Trek Aerospace retired the prototype last summer to concentrate on a second-generation model with better joysticks and a smoother engine. The Sunnyvale-based company hopes to sell personal flying machines to the military, allowing soldiers to pass over swamps, mine fields and other rough terrain.
The company is studying whether consumers would use its craft, which theoretically could ascend to 10,000 feet.
The winner of the auction must sign a contract promising not to fly the prototype, to use it for exhibition only. Moshier expects to sell the aluminum and titanium machine to a museum or aviation enthusiast.
"It's a different kind of aircraft," he said. "It has a tremendous amount of historical value."
Hmm :)
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASE
China: Internet users at risk of arbitrary detention, torture and even execution
Amnesty International called today on the Chinese authorities to release all those currently detained or jailed for using the Internet to peacefully express their views or share information.
"Everyone detained purely for peacefully publishing their views or other information on the Internet or for accessing certain websites are prisoners of conscience," Amnesty International said. "They should be released immediately and unconditionally".