Watch: New flying car unveiled in UAE that can fly up to 500km
Imagine flying from Dubai to Bahrain in just 2 hours and 20 minutes, or cruising through the skies from Riyadh to Kuwait in 2 hours and 40. But you won't board a plane. You will be in a flying car.
By 2027, flying cars could be a reality in the UAE skies.
On Thursday, Holland-based mobility solution provider PAL-V unveiled its flying car at the Sharjah Research Technology and Innovation Park (SRTIP). The two-seater flydrive mobility car needs a 250-metre strip to take off and its foldable propellers allow the flying vehicle to be converted into a car.
With a base model priced at $800,000 (Dh2.9 million), it is expected to take to the UAE skies in 2027 following regulatory approvals from the local authorities, Robert Dingemanse, CEO and co-founder of PAL-V, told Khaleej Times in an interview on Thursday.
The payload of the flying car is limited to two persons and 20kg of luggage. Equipped with a combustion engine, it can fly up to a distance of 500km on a full fuel tank.
It flies at a low altitude and can be useful to help doctors reach their destination faster in case of emergency, border patrolling, coast guarding and other military purposes. Dingemanse said flying car offers door-to-door mobility and can use existing infrastructure and regulations.
'It is faster than any other mode of transport and cost-effective from an operational perspective, cheaper than the helicopter. It is possible to reach every sport as landing nearby is fine and there is always a drive option available. It has the same range and speed as a helicopter, but safer,' he said.
Dingemanse said the decision will be made by the UAE authorities regarding the private use of individuals in the UAE. 'The vehicle can be used for flying taxis as well.' Dingemanse revealed that they also aim to set up an institute in the UAE or the Middle East for pilot training.
PAL-V chief expects most orders from the UAE will come from government entities.
He said the UAE-based Jetex has ordered over 100 PAL-V's flying cars. In total, it has over 150 million euros worth of pre-orders.
Currently, Archer Aviation and Joby are in the process of launching flying taxis in the UAE later this year or early next year.
Archer has announced that it will launch test flights of its Midnight aircraft in the UAE in the summer, ahead of the roll-out of flying taxi operations in the UAE.
In January 2025, the UAE's first commercial vertiport for flying taxis was named Dubai International Vertiport (DXV), reflecting both Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
In April 2025, it said the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, EASA, issued a 'No Technical Objection' to PAL-V. PAL-V aims to introduce four-seater and eco-friendly flying cars in the coming years.
Hussain Almahmoudi, CEO of SRTIP, said the introduction of flying cars reflects that the UAE and the wider region are interested in sustainable transport.
'As country get populated and develops, we need to have different methods of transport and technology like this could be used in different purposes from tourism to transportation and healthcare and rescue other components,' he said.
'We want to see these technologies developed here in SRTIP. We have over 20 educational institutions and over 40,000 students here. We developed a good base of labs that can produce 3D components and modern technologies,'
Juma Abdulla Alhaj, director of strategic communications and market at SRTIP, said they are open to collaborating with PAL-V to set up an assembly unit for PAL-V flying cars.
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