justin.schneider@heraldbulletin.com

Imagine terra firma falling away, as you’re floating above rush-hour traffic and arriving safely home.

Impossible, right? Maybe not.

Anderson-based Air Buoyant, is developing a one-person flying platform called the VertiPod. Classified as an ultralight aircraft, the propeller-powered VertiPod’s simple controls could spark a transportation revolution.

“It’s kind of the first step toward the flying car,” said Air Buoyant President and CEO Pete Bitar. “We call it the Segway of the sky. It has a rudder that steers it laterally, but you just lean in the direction you want to go.”

If this sounds a bit like science fiction, consider what Bitar has already accomplished.

His other company, Xtreme Alternative Defense Systems, has attracted attention for its non-lethal weapons, including photonic disruptors, which fire a burst of light causing temporarily blindness. In May 2005, the company was featured on a Discovery Channel show about the science of “Star Wars.”

“Our stuff looks great on TV,” said Edward Fry, vice president of communications and marketing for XADS. “Lasers and flashing lights make a strong impression. One good thing it has done is bring exposure to the city.”

XADS earned a $10 million contract through the U.S. Defense Department to develop technology to counter improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, in Iraq and Afghanistan. Air Buoyant was incorporated in October 2006.

The Vertipod looks a bit like a one-passenger helicopter turned upside-down. Its propeller is on the bottom and the pilot stands on a platform built around it with back support and controls at waist-level.

It is powered by a 440-cubic-centimeter engine that runs on gasoline or ethanol and can be activated with a pull-start, like a lawnmower. The VertiPod is intended to travel five to 15 feet above ground at a top speed of 40 mph. Bitar said it will be sold for $10,000 in a kit that can be assembled in a weekend.

“It actually flies, unlike a hovercraft, which is just a ground effect,” Bitar said. “It could have applications for law enforcement, especially border patrol, but it will also be available to the consumer market.”

Between Air Buoyant and XADS, Bitar said he has facilities scattered all around Anderson: an office at the Flagship Enterprise Center, 6,000 square feet at Anderson Tool and Engineering, 4,500 square feet of hangar space at Anderson Municipal Airport and 1,200 square feet of office space in the terminal building.

“We’re all over the place, and I don’t like that,” Bitar said. “From the southwest corner of the city to the northeast corner of the city. I don’t like that. I want to consolidate.”

Bitar said he wants to be the charter investor in Anderson Municipal Airport’s Aero Park at a proposed business park for aviation- and engineering-related businesses. But he is hesitant to construct his 20,000-square-foot facility before roads make Aero Park accessible.

“I would love to get him a hangar up there,” said Tony Rogers, president of the Anderson Board of Aviation Commissioners. “I like the way his company is going, and I would like to give him the opportunity to expand if it didn’t come with more expenses to me.”

Amid talk of a new airport in southwest Madison County, Bitar has even submitted a proposal to purchase the airport from the city. He has submitted a written offer of $500,000 and pledged to keep the airport open for public use, which he said would save the city around $200,000 a year and preserve grants from the Federal Aviation Administration.

With the VertiPod, Bitar said, Air Buoyant could expand into aerospace in the coming years, and he is already exploring work with satellites.

“I hope this can become a hub for aviation and aerospace,” Bitar said. “One day we can call it the Anderson Spaceport.’”



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VertiPod

Anderson-based Air Buoyant is developing the VertiPod, a single-passenger flying platform that President and CEO Pete Bitar describes as “the Segway of the sky.” A prototype of the vehicle is currently being tested. Bitar sees the military and border patrol as potential markets, but said the VertiPod will be available to consumers in a kit to be assembled in a weekend.

- Classification: Ultra-light aircraft

- Engine: 50-horsepower, 440-cubic-centimeters

- Fuel: Gasoline or ethanol (using 2 gallons per hour)

- Altitude: 5 to 15 feet

- Top speed: 40 mph

- Cost: $10,000

— Source: Air Buoyant