With Tesla Roadster debut, Elon Musk shows "flying cars are real"

Houston — Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled what he described as a "flying" car, equipped with thrusters, during a livestreamed event at his SpaceX rocket company's facility on Thursday.

Technical and regulatory challenges have so far prevented the much-hyped flying car sector from getting off the ground.

Musk revealed Tesla 's new Roadster sports car during a launch event at a SpaceX test facility in Texas.

During the demo, which was livestreamed on Tesla's X account, the car launched from a ramp that curled over so the vehicle was upside down, appearing to defy gravity by clinging to the surface before flying off the end, and then rolled over 180 degrees mid-air to land on its wheels.

"Flying cars are real," Musk said during the event, adding that the vehicle's "success is not guaranteed" but "it will probably work."

Musk said the car was equipped with "ultra high-pressure air tanks" to propel itself into the air.

The tech billionaire described the development as "what happens when you have a collaboration with the world's best car company and the world's best rocket company," referring to Tesla and SpaceX.

American aviation pioneer Glenn Curtiss debuted the first flying car prototype in 1917.

But successful designs have become more seriously contemplated only in recent years as electric motors and high-performance batteries have advanced.

Musk, who has appeared to have a close but sometimes tumultuous relationship with President Trump, has thrust his companies to the forefront of several major industries, and he continues pushing into new ones.

SpaceX announced a week ago that it had agreed to buy licenses for radio airwaves that will enable its Starlink Mobile satellite business to provide cellular service inside buildings, a move the company said would allow it to "become a major mobile carrier in the U.S."

"This is the last critical piece of the spectrum puzzle needed for SpaceX to provide complete phone coverage in America," Musk said in an Oct. 8 social media post .