Sci-fan builds flying saucer
A sci-fi fan has spent 30 years and £30,000 building his own flying saucer.
Builder Alfie Carrington, 57, put the machine together in his garage in Clinton, Michigan, using aviation books.
His aim is not to fly into space - he wants to replace the automobile with a Jetsons-style vehicle.
"Why drive when you can fly 500mph?" he asked the Detroit Free Press.
His work caught the attention of Nasa, which invited him to a conference in the mid-1990s where engineers scratched their heads when he confessed he knew nothing about computers.
His idea is to fire up the vessel with a rotary engine to stimulate a magnetic levitation system to rotate the ship's two discs.
"It's a simple concept," Carrington said. "There is no way this thing can't get off the ground because 40% of it is rotating."
Aeronautical engineers aren't so confident, especially considering the rotation speeds needed to lift the aircraft.
"If it's not properly designed and built, it will rip itself apart. I wouldn't want to stand next to it when it gets up to speed," said aviation expert Cornelis van Dam.
Mr Carrington hopes to launch his dream in eight months, assuming he can raise at least another £20,000 to complete the project.
"When he starts it up, we'll know either it was the biggest folly of all time, or one of the most ingenious inventions of all time," said his friend D.L. Bradley, a pastor in Clinton Township.
A sci-fi fan has spent 30 years and £30,000 building his own flying saucer.
Builder Alfie Carrington, 57, put the machine together in his garage in Clinton, Michigan, using aviation books.
His aim is not to fly into space - he wants to replace the automobile with a Jetsons-style vehicle.
"Why drive when you can fly 500mph?" he asked the Detroit Free Press.
His work caught the attention of Nasa, which invited him to a conference in the mid-1990s where engineers scratched their heads when he confessed he knew nothing about computers.
His idea is to fire up the vessel with a rotary engine to stimulate a magnetic levitation system to rotate the ship's two discs.
"It's a simple concept," Carrington said. "There is no way this thing can't get off the ground because 40% of it is rotating."
Aeronautical engineers aren't so confident, especially considering the rotation speeds needed to lift the aircraft.
"If it's not properly designed and built, it will rip itself apart. I wouldn't want to stand next to it when it gets up to speed," said aviation expert Cornelis van Dam.
Mr Carrington hopes to launch his dream in eight months, assuming he can raise at least another £20,000 to complete the project.
"When he starts it up, we'll know either it was the biggest folly of all time, or one of the most ingenious inventions of all time," said his friend D.L. Bradley, a pastor in Clinton Township.