Give the military credit, they left no lunatic idea untested - behold the Piasecki VZ-8 Airgeep

The U.S Army toyed with a “flying jeep” concept throughout the 1950’s and into the early 60’s.  The idea was fast, reliable, reconnaissance platforms that a basic trooper could operate.  Think of The Jetsons combined with something out of Buck Rogers.  Eventually the Army decided that the “Flying Jeep concept [was] unsuitable for the modern battlefield”, and went with the concept of helicopters, already being employed heavily by the Navy and Marines, instead.