Those Flying Speeder Bikes From 'Return of the Jedi' Could Soon Be a Reality
A prototype for the Flike
Fasten your seat belts and get ready for the ride of your childhood Star Wars dreams. In Return of the Jedi, Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia race through the forests of Endor on hovering motorcycles called speeder bikes. Now, a team of Hungarian flight enthusiasts is developing a hovering tricopter that can be mounted like a bicycle. Whether it’s fast enough to evade Stormtroopers has yet to be seen — but it sure looks cool.
Luke and Leia on a speeder bike in ‘Return of the Jedi’
Called Flike, the vehicle is touted on its website as a “revolutionary, all-electric personal flight device.” Three pairs of rotors allow the Flike to ascend in the air, while a Lithium Polymer battery gives it 15-20 minutes of hover flight. The Flike website boasts that the vehicle can “hover, roll, bank, drift, spin, yaw, climb, turn, sidle,” or “dive” just like a helicopter, while a built-in computer makes flying Flike “as easy as riding a bicycle.” (H/t to CNET)
The video above, posted in May, shows a flight test for the prototype — which does indeed look a lot like those Star Wars speeder bikes. However, Flike is still in the early stages of development, and the concept design for the final product looks more like a sleek aircraft.
The inventors of Flike developed their concept through a nonprofit applied research institute, and are now seeking investors to make their dream vehicle a reality. While you’re waiting for your Flike, feed your Return of the Jedi nostalgia by watching the speeder bike chase scene, below.
