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"In WWII, they had a saying that there are no atheists in foxholes. I think the modern equivalent of that is that there are no jaded, bored people in the high-tech industry, in the land of really good hardcore geeks."
- Neal Stephenson

Kite-Copter Car  
  An observation car suspended below a device that supplies lift.  

How best to convey paying guests over rough ground, while minimizing noise? Balloons work, but are very slow.

The observation vehicle was of that peculiar variety used in conveying a large number of people across rough terrain. The car proper was suspended by a pair of cables from the kite-copter which flew five hundred feet overhead. The operator, seated in the nose of the car, worked pitch and attack by remote control, and so could skim quietly five feet over the ground, hover over waterfalls, ridges, ponds, other areas of scenic beauty with neither noise nor the thrash of driven air to disturb the passengers.
Technovelgy from The Kokod Warriors, by Jack Vance.
Published by Thrilling Wonder Stories in 1952
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Additional resources:
  More Ideas and Technology from The Kokod Warriors
  More Ideas and Technology by Jack Vance
  Tech news articles related to The Kokod Warriors
  Tech news articles related to works by Jack Vance

Kite-Copter Car-related news articles:
  - Hotelicopter Hovering Hotel
  - Parajet SkyCar Adventure
  - I Want A Curiosity Rover Sky Crane!
  - Drone-Based Aerial Hammock

Articles related to Vehicle
Waymo And Tesla 'Autonomous Cabs' Are Piloted By Remote Drivers
Maybe It's Too Soon To Require Autonomous Mode
Caterpillar Electric Mining Loader Not Yet Ready For Moon
Engineer Creates Crazy Motorized Track Hospital Bed

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