Houston - Tesla chief Elon Musk introduced a vehicle he called flying, complete with propulsion units, at a broadcast gathering held at the SpaceX test site in Texas on Thursday.

Engineering and approval hurdles have blocked the much discussed airborne vehicle field from advancing until now.

Musk showed the fresh Roadster sports car at the launch gathering inside the SpaceX area.

In the broadcast on Tesla social channels the car sped up a curved ramp that flipped it over, seeming to ignore gravity while holding to the track before shooting off the end, then turned 180 degrees while in flight to settle on its tires.

Flying cars are real, Musk stated at the gathering, noting that the outcome is not assured yet it will likely succeed.

Musk explained the car uses ultra high pressure air tanks to lift itself skyward.

The tech executive called the effort the result of teamwork between the top car firm and the top rocket firm, pointing to Tesla and SpaceX.

The vehicle enters production in 2028, he noted. Costs were not shared.

Tesla site states the planned airborne version is not cleared for street driving.

Interested buyers can reserve online with a 5000 dollar deposit for a standard Roadster model. A special Thrust edition is listed but not open for reservation. The site adds the Rocket version with full flight gear will be available by invite only.

The Roadster will not shift sales volume or income much since output looks limited, and backers should not count on it for growth, Wall Street analyst Dan Ives of Yorkville Ives wrote in a note. It does bring back the brand image at the high end and highlights the engineering work just before the quarterly results on October 21st.

The idea of flying cars dates back nearly to the start of autos, as aviation pioneer Glenn Curtiss showed the first prototype in 1917. Yet workable versions have gained real effort only lately as electric motors and strong batteries improved.

Ives noted the Roadster highlights how Tesla and SpaceX can join forces. The new car places the link between the firms in clear view, with drive, tank, and control parts from the rocket side placed on a Tesla item, which he said supports viewing the two as one engineering base going forward.

Musk, a leading political backer with a sometimes steady yet variable tie to President Trump, has pushed his firms into key sectors and keeps entering fresh areas.

SpaceX said a week earlier it had secured rights to radio bands that will let its Starlink Mobile service deliver phone links inside structures, a step the firm said would make it a major wireless provider in the US.

This is the final key part of the spectrum plan needed for SpaceX to give full phone coverage across America, Musk posted on social media on October 8.

In:

Tesla
Elon Musk
Electric Vehicles
SpaceX
Auto Industry