On 15 October 2026, at a SpaceX test site in McGregor, Texas, a white Tesla Roadster did something cars aren’t supposed to do. It drove up a ramp, flipped through the air and leapt over a row of other Teslas. “Turns out the future does have flying cars,” Elon Musk told the crowd.
So, are flying cars finally here? Sort of. Tesla’s car can jump, a few rivals can genuinely fly, and air taxis are closing in. Here’s what each one can really do in 2026, and when you might get a ride.
Tesla’s “flying” Roadster
How the Roadster leaves the ground
Tesla first revealed its second-generation Roadster in 2017. A year later, Musk promised a “SpaceX option package” with about 10 small rocket thrusters around the car. After years of delays, it finally arrived.
The thrusters don’t burn rocket fuel. They fire compressed air from 600 litres of tanks packed into the car, and the tanks can be refilled. Tesla says they push four to five times harder than the tyres can grip. It also showed the car reaching 60 mph (97 km/h) in about a second.
The demo car had no driver on board. And it isn’t the first Roadster SpaceX has sent flying. In 2018, a Falcon Heavy rocket launched Musk’s own original Roadster into space, with a dummy called Starman at the wheel.
Can you buy one?
Tesla is taking reservations for three versions. The road-going Performance model costs $50,000 to reserve. The Thrust version, with rear thrusters for even faster launches, needs a $250,000 deposit. The one-seat Rocket version, with all 10 thrusters, is invitation-only, and Tesla’s own website says it isn’t approved for public roads.
Production is planned for 2028, and Musk admitted Tesla would “aspire not to kill anyone in this car”. As for flying, the US aviation regulator says “the Tesla vehicle does not meet the FAA definition of an aircraft.” For now, it’s a car that can jump, not one you can fly to work.
Flying cars you can drive on the road
While Tesla’s car hops, California start-up Alef Aeronautics has built one that takes off straight up. Its electric Model A looks like a normal car, but eight propellers sit under a mesh body. Once airborne, the whole car tilts on its side and flies like a biplane, while the cabin swivels to keep passengers upright.
Alef claims a 220-mile (354 km) driving range and a 110-mile (177 km) flying range. On the day of Tesla’s demo, it posted a video of the Model A flying over an older Roadster and a Cybertruck. Its boss, Jim Dukhovny, welcomed Tesla to the race, saying Alef had been “here alone for eleven years.”
The Model A costs $299,999, and Alef reports more than 3,600 preorders. Hand-building began in California in December 2025. No more than 10 early buyers, in California and Hong Kong, are due to get one by the end of 2026. In the US, this first version counts as an ultralight. Owners need only a driving licence, but it’s limited to 25 mph (40 km/h) on public roads and can fly only in daylight, away from built-up areas.
Klein Vision AirCar
If Alef’s car is a drone with number plates, Slovakia’s AirCar is a sports car with wings. At the push of a button, its wings unfold, a tail extends and a rear propeller takes over. In under two and a half minutes, it becomes a small plane. Unlike Alef’s car, it needs a runway.
In June 2021, the prototype made a 35-minute flight between the airports of Nitra and Bratislava. Slovakia’s authorities gave it an airworthiness certificate in January 2022, and in April 2024 the musician Jean-Michel Jarre became its first passenger.
Its makers promised deliveries in early 2026, priced at $800,000 to $1.2 million. That date has slipped. As of September 2026, there were no confirmed deliveries, and four orders were on hold until the production version gets final approval.
The flying car that comes with its own truck
Aridge Land Aircraft Carrier
China’s XPeng found another answer to “where do I take off?” Its flying-car company, now called Aridge, makes the Land Aircraft Carrier: a six-wheeled truck that carries a two-seat electric aircraft in the back. Drive somewhere open, press a button, and the two parts separate in under five minutes.
The set is priced at around $280,000 in China, and Aridge reports more than 7,000 orders. Its Guangzhou factory, built to make up to 10,000 aircraft a year, produced its first one in November 2025.
But buyers are still waiting. In August 2026, founder Zhao Deli admitted, “We cannot deliver this year.” The aircraft still needs its final certificate from China’s aviation regulator, and first deliveries are now targeted for 2027.
Flying taxis you might ride first
Joby’s electric air taxi
For most people, the first flying vehicle they ride in will probably be a taxi. California’s Joby Aviation has built an electric air taxi that takes off like a helicopter and cruises like a plane. It carries a pilot and four passengers at up to 200 mph (320 km/h).
Its first stop is Dubai, where Joby has six years of exclusive rights. Riders will book through the Uber app. The trip from Dubai International Airport to Palm Jumeirah could shrink from about 45 minutes by car to about 10 by air.
Joby had hoped to fly its first passengers there in 2026. In November, it said its second Dubai vertiport was finished and piloted test flights across the network would follow later this year. No passenger has flown yet: chief executive JoeBen Bevirt plans to ride in its passenger test aircraft himself in the coming months.
EHang’s pilotless EH216-S
China’s EHang goes further: its EH216-S passenger drone has no pilot on board at all. It holds all four certificates China’s aviation regulator issues, covering its design, production, airworthiness and operations. The EH216 series has made nearly 100,000 flights.
Yet you still can’t buy a ticket. Paid flights were due to start in March 2026. Then, in June, a piloted light aircraft crashed into a Beijing skyscraper, and regulators slowed approvals across the industry. EHang is now pushing ahead in Thailand, Hong Kong and Sri Lanka.
So, are flying cars finally here?
Almost. In 2026, you can reserve a Tesla that jumps, preorder an electric car that takes off vertically, or order a truck that carries its own aircraft. But each costs hundreds of thousands of dollars, and few, if any, have reached customers. Regulators, not engineers, are now the slowest part of the journey.
Air taxis may get ordinary passengers off the ground first. Until then, the traffic jam isn’t going anywhere, and neither are you.
Which would you try first: the jumping Tesla, the tilting Alef or a seat in an air taxi? Tell us in the comments.
Curious about other tech that’s changing everyday life? Find out how a new laser technology could test for dementia in five minutes, or check the 8 signs of phone addiction and how technology keeps you hooked. And pin this one for the day flying cars finally land on your street.