Last year, 451 backers pledged £64,089 to bring Malloy’s hoverbike prototype to life on Kickstarter. That same company has now announced a partnership with a US Department of Defense contractor to build the futuristic bike for the US Army. Under the new partnership, Malloy Aeronautics will open an office in Maryland and build the bikes with SURVICE Engineering Co, a DOD contractor, to operate as a “tactical reconnaissance vehicle.” The hoverbike was positioned on Kickstarter as a rideable motorcycle for the sky, with two engines and a petrol motor keeping it in the air. The design has since been altered as “current technology” meant it could not build the device to be both safe and cheap enough for it to sell well. In its current form, the hoverbike looks like a oversized, rideable quadcopter.