"The new design improves performance and shortens the pathway to production by transferring much of what worked well in the test vehicle that flew, into the new streamlined design," said Sam Bousfield, Samson Sky CEO and designer of the Switchblade, citing that the new design is simpler and much easier to build.
The company reported that they validated many key parameters during flight testing and the new design elevates the Switchblade to the next level. "Many people don't know that a company developing a brand-new aircraft never goes into production with their initial design," stated Bousfield. "There are always changes and modifications based on things learned from flight testing, and we've used these to improve even more on our original design, while keeping our signature swinging wings that tuck away completely inside the vehicle when driving."
The website describes the Switchblade as a high-performance vehicle, both on the road and in the air. The test vehicle that flew in 2023 achieved their target of 125 mph in ground testing, and company officials stated they made these design changes to achieve their flying cruise speed target.
According to Bousfield, wind tunnel testing in May validated that the new design with the sleeker body and thruster propellers will allow Samson to meet their target of 160-mph flying cruise speed. He explained that this gives Samson the green light on moving ahead with the enhanced body design. Wind tunnel testing is standard practice in the aviation industry, and is widely used by Boeing, Airbus, Cessna and many others. The wind tunnel provides real-world data and can get within 3% of 'actual' performance.
Samson is building three test vehicles over the next 18 months to be used for intensive testing on every aspect of the vehicle, both flying and driving.
The Switchblade Flying Sports Car is a street-legal, hybrid electric vehicle that is high-performance both on the road and in the air. You park the Switchblade in your garage, and drive it from there to a nearby airport. Once there, the wings swing out and the tail extends in under three minutes. You fly your registered aircraft to the airport nearest your destination, then simply land, transform back to driving mode – the wings and tail safely stowed and protected – and drive the last few miles to your destination. The Switchblade seats two, side-by-side, with room for travel bags, and flies up to 500 miles on a single tank of premium auto gas.
