World’s First Flight-Capable ATV Goes on Sale

Well sure we use the term all-terrain pretty freely around here but even the hardiest of our ATVs typically neglect the ability to leave the earth to explore the heavens like a bird… until now.

Calling their new UTV the SkyRunner, Parajet USA is on the cusp of releasing a single-seat UTV with a rear-mounted propeller all linked up to a fabric reflex paraglider wing to enable flight on command.

Powering the SkyRunner is a 1-liter three-cylinder turbocharged engine “lifted” from the Ford Fiesta automobile.

According to its designers, it’s good for 115-mph on the earth (while still netting fifty-three mpg) and flight speed of 55-mph in the air with a range of roughly 200 nautical miles.

Its is capable of achieving altitude of 15,000 feet, or slightly higher than the type of air pro-motocrossers grab on the triples, though FAA regs restrict its operation to 10,000 feet so as not to have your day out on the trails come to an early end thanks to the propeller of a Cessna.

All that’s required to take this UTV skyward is sport pilot’s license (which can be earned with just 12-hours of lessons).

Now the bad news, the ability to defy gravity rarely comes cheap and the SkyRunner is no exception. The MSRP of this bad boy comes in at a cool $119,000 (fully loaded) but the company will be happy to build you one for a deposit of $1,500. Considering they don’t expect the units to ship till mid-2014, you may just have enough time to rob a few banks to pay off the balance.