Motorcycle Drone Transformer Seen at CES
The Rictor Skyrider X1 is a motorcycle that can convert into a drone, promising 40-minute flights and speeds of up to 60mph
The CES exhibition in Las Vagas is in full swing, and quite possibly the weirdest motorcycle we’ve ever seen has been revealed at the event.
It’s called the Rictor Skyrider X1, and as the title of this article suggests, it’s a transformer that can either whisk you along the road like any other motorcycle or, at the flip of a switch, allow you to take to the skies. And that’s not all, the X1 also apparently features autonomous navigation - let's just hope it gets updated with any new skyscrapers that get built!
Built by Rictor, the Skyrider is the first VTOL in the company's range - the rest of its range rather unnervingly consists of E-bikes and electric-assisted bicycles. Nonetheless, Rictor has lofty ambitions for the machine, although the same lofty altitude isn’t on the cards, as the spec sheet only shows a 200-metre flight ceiling. Two versions of the craft are being mooted, the X1 SL and X1 SX. The two machines only seem to differ in battery capacity, with the SL boasting a 10.5kWh battery and 25-minute flight times, while the XS’s 21kWh pack allows for 40 minutes of aerial high jynx.
Billed as an electric moped with an enclosed cabin, its makers claim that at the time of launch (said to be 2026 - yeah right!) the machine will cost $60,000, and that it’ll be able to whisk you through the air at speeds of up to 60mph thanks to its eight rotor design.
And this all sounds very good, in theory, because that is all the project is at this time - a flashy-looking model with some slick computer graphics and the inevitable call for people to place deposits.
Seriously, if this thing hits the market in 2026, I’ll eat my boxer shorts.
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Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
