Earlier this morning, eyes in the state of Florida turned skyward, as the space shuttle made it’s last night launch, and third-to-last launch at all. The NASA space program will be changing over the next few years, but so will the insurance industry.

How so?

Well, even though the shuttle isn’t in line for an “older vehicle” discount of any kind, there are new auto technologies being developed that will require both aviation insurance and conventional auto insurance. One such vehicle has been developed by the Woburn, Massachusetts-based Terrafugia, Inc, which has just completed the flight testing program for it’s “flying car,” more properly known as the Transition Roadable Aircraft.

Expected to be available sometime next year, the flying car is a two-seat aircraft/automobile hybrid (it transforms from plane to car in under 30 seconds) designed to drive on any road, and to take off and land at local (read: regional) airports. It’s top road speed will be more than 115/hour and it will have an in-air cruise distance of about 450 miles. Even better, it uses unleaded gasoline, so pilots/drivers will be able to fill it up at any gas station.

The expected price of the flying car is $194,000 but reservations will be taken with a mere $10,000 deposit. You’ll be in line behind more than seventy other people, so don’t delay.

As to insuring the machine, which is small enough to fit into a conventional garage, we recommend against insuring it during tourist season in Florida – that’s when prices are the highest and accidents – on land, sea, and in the air – are more likely to happen.