The world’s smallest commercial jet has taken to the skies for the first time and is attracting interest from all over the world – including reportedly from Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson. Pilot Wieslaw Cena tested the five-seat Flaris LAR 1 at the Zielona Gora Airport near the town of Babimost in south east Poland.
The small jet only weighs 700KG and is powered by a single Williams FJ33-5A turbofan engine. It has been deliberately designed to look like a traditional car on the inside and also comes with detachable wings to help with storage.
The manufacturers say it will be the cheapest passenger jet on the market at just over two million euros (£1.7m). They plan to produce several models next year and hope to have it on the market early next decade. The plane is being developed by the Polish company Metal Master and is the only single-engined light jet being made outside of the United States.
Rafal Landinski, the founder of Metal Master, said: “The aircraft performed and handled very well in difficult conditions.”
According to reports, the jet only needs 100 metres of runway and can reach an altitude of 5,900 feet in a minute.
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