Elon Musk's next invention is an VTOL supersonic jet!
By on Aug 15th 2016
Elon Musk is no stranger to The Flight Blog.
However, amid all of the commotion regarding his involvement in SpaceX, the Hyperloop, Tesla Motors, OpenAI, and the Death Star, we've somehow managed to overlook Musk's subtle plan to change the way we travel by air.
Musk has already developed an automobile company that has changed everything we know about driving. Over what seemed like just a few years, Tesla Motors has completely exploded in terms of its yearly revenue as well as public influence. Suffice it to say you can only expect more Tesla vehicles to pop up in your neighborhood. The company's revenue now sits pretty at about $4.04 billion-a remarkable number for a company started only thirteen years ago.
With those kind of numbers, it makes sense that few people have ever even heard of Musk's plan for a supersonic, electric, vertical take-off and landing jet. Remarkably, Musk revealed his interest in this idea years ago-even before he was a household name. Even more interesting is this little sequence from 2010's Iron Man, which briefly shows one extravagant billionaire in Musk conversing with another extravagant billionaire: Tony Stark, played by Robert Downey Jr; of all the things Musk chose to talk about back then, he chose his idea for this jet:
Still, almost seven years down the road and nothing has come of this plan. Where does Musk stand with his supersonic invention?
As of January of 2016, Elon Musk has not given up on his jet. Speaking at the Hyperloop Pod Award Ceremony at Texas A&M University, Musk was asked what his next great idea might be. Musk coolly responded:
"Well, I have been thinking about the vertical takeoff and landing electric jet a bit more. I think I have something that might close. I'm quite tempted to do something about it."
It took a few seconds for the crowd to kick-in to a resounding applause and cheer.
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