Meet 'George Jetson' and His Skycar

The decades-long effort to market an affordable aircraft reached a milestone this week with the trading of its common stock.

Dr. Paul Moller, the inventor of the Skycar, said the listing of Moller International (MLER) on the NASD Bulletin Board represents a big step in the growth of his company by allowing access to more potential investors.

Raising money, Moller said, has been a bigger challenge than developing the Skycar technology. "Nothing I'm doing is inexpensive," Moller told News10.

Moller's dream is to sell an aircraft that can be flown without a pilot's license using the "highway in the sky" system currently under development by the federal government. The initial cost of the Skycar is listed at just under $1 million, but Moller expects the price to drop dramatically with mass production. "This vehicle should cost no more than an automobile if produced in similar numbers," Moller said.

Moller International has formed a strategic alliance with Pratt & Whitney to manufacture the eight lightweight engines needed for each Skycar. The company is still seeking an investment and manufacturing partner to produce the airframe.

Much of the money raised so far to develop the Skycar has come from Moller himself. He started the company in 1980 with $5 million raised from developing Research Park in Davis, California, where his company headquarters is located. Moller hopes to raise an additional $30 million by developing the landmark Milk Farm property in nearby Dixon. His plan includes a 60-acre commercial project surrounding a man-made lake.

Moller believes he could have brought the Skycar to market years earlier by using expensive turbine technology, but chose not to. "I wanted something that I honestly believe as an average hard-working American, I could buy," Moller explains.

Moller International has accepted 100 Skycar deposits ranging from $5,000 to $25,000 each. The company has offered to refund the deposits if the FAA hasn't certified the Skycar for flight by the end of 2008.