4. The Waterman Arrowbile
A single-engine, tailless, two-seat design, the Waterman Arrowbile was realized by Waldo Waterman. One variation Waterman created was known as the Aerobile (although he referred to it as the W-5), and it has the dubious distinction of appearing on Time magazine’s list of the “50 Worst Cars of All Time.”
It all started when Waterman built an aircraft he whimsically named the Waterman Whatsit. This early design led to the development of the Arrowplane (W-4), a flying aircraft with tricycle wheels that Waterman entered in the Vidal Safety Airplane Competition in 1935. Encouraged by the Arrowplane’s success, Waterman went on to create the more roadable version, the Arrowbile.
In all, six versions of the Arrowbile were built, with the first one flown in 1937 and the last completed and tested in 1957. The third of them is pictured above, and you can see the single headlight, radiator grille and car-like doors highlighting its resemblance to standard automobiles.
However, despite safe flight tests, buyers weren’t forthcoming, and Waterman’s flying car was never produced on a large scale.