what_next wrote:
Anyway, my personal favorite regarding ground transport is having the guy from the handling company call us a taxi. You can do this many many times for the price of a high-tech folding bike or lethal Segway-with-no-habdlebars-thingy.
Quite a point. But then there are people who want to get to a destination (customer, hotel) and others who see the way as the destination. Exploring by bike is part of the experience. The wonderful world of GA with all its nuances :-)
I don’t look for handling but also ask for a taxi or a rental car. The destination is not the airport :-)
Resurrecting my own topic. Over several years, I tried lighter solutions – a bicycle and an electric bicycle. Both solutions provided acceptable transportation when I was flying alone, had no more than 10 kg luggage and needed to cover no more than 20-30 km from the destination aerodrome. However, I am now facing a possibility of regular trips with a significantly longer distance at the destination (50 to 90 km from the aerodrome), and I may occasionally need to carry a passenger. My current mission profile looks like this:
- capable of being ridden 2-up + a bit of luggage
- at least 45 km/h when fully laden, as fast as possible when solo and light (85+ km/h if possible)
- ideally below 80 kg empty weight
- easily splittable in the field into several pieces <40 kg each to be loaded into the baggage compartment by the pilot alone (removing the wheels, the tank, the seat etc.)
- not totally ugly
A few interesting variants I identified by the photo and specs but have not seen them in flesh yet (or have seen only briefly):
Suzuki Gamma RG50 – a tiny sportsbike: weighs 62 to 73 kg depending on the model year, goes up to 90-95 km/h, or 115-120 km/h top speed with an RG80 engine (easy to transplant);
Suzuki GT80L – a bit heavier (87 kg) but very compact classic motorcycle: allegedly, only 1440 mm long;
Simson S51 – a classical noisy and stinky 78-kg East German light motorcycle (almost a moped) with quite a following around here, 4-speed gearbox can be upgraded to 5-speed by changing one shaft, 50 cm3 cylinder can be swapped to 60/70/90/110;
Gilera DNA 50 – relatively heavy at 96 kg, a scooter-motorcycle hybrid: motorcycle frame, automatic transmission, fake fuel tank serves as luggage/helmet space, runs fast (~95 km/h) when derestricted.
Any opinions about these four and any other models will be greatly appreciated.
I have exactly zero experience with any of the bikes you mention, but have to admit the RG50 is an intriguing solution 
In Corsica I’ve seen a lot of Chinese manufactured Honda Trail 70 replicas, often with up to 125 cc displacement, so plenty quick for your needs. I think their popularity must be a French ‘thing’. Those were originally designed with fold down handlebars and small wheels to make them easily transportable, and they appear to meet your weight budget.
I have a California GoPed. 40 km/h, loud as hell, but solid and reliable and a range of 50 km. Very light too. Not approved for German public roads, but ok in CZ, HR and GR
Greetings from FL330, LH453 from L.A. to Munich.
Given the skew towards XXL shirts of peters thread, the Brompton might be something to consider . Mine did a great job in a series of planes, and this afternoon probably cycling from Lugano to bellagip
have you thought about an electric bicycle? The new ones have great range and good speed.
Adam, I have a folding electric bicycle, and it’s OK without a passenger and when the speed of 25-30 km/h is sufficient. However, it’s unreasonably slow for a long commute (60-80 km), and you need two bikes if you fly with a passenger.
Alexis wrote:
Greetings from FL330, LH453 from L.A. to Munich.
Likewise, I’m sure… although 35K seems to be the altitude du jour.
On topic, I think the Simson S35 might be the most fun of those suggested by Ultranomad. They were made in Suhl, eastern Germany.
Could an electric scooter be the answer to the common problem of how to get from an airfield in the middle of nowhere, into town?
I found this review interesting. Those it now seems to be quite a bit more expensive. It’s now quoted on gear best at around €450. As it’s coming from outside the EU, import taxes will probably add another €150. Still with the price of taxis, it shouldn’t take too long to save that!
I suppose most of us would need two of them as we’ve probably got a passenger.
They way 13kg and fold down to a size that should fit in the luggage baby easily enough.
This could be it. I’ve been watching electric skateboards but they seem to be a little bit extreme or require a lot of skills. Folding bikes are much too big and heavy and take too much space. If these go 20km+ they look like a winner. If this scooter is 15kg with little under 20km range then maybe a 20kg scooter would go 20km+ in most scenarios.
