In case you weren’t paying attention, Iron Man-style flying suits are relatively normal now. The UK ambulance service has tested them for reaching difficult spots, the Royal Navy flew between an escort ship and an aircraft carrier, and armed police held a high-speed chase to catch a simulated criminal – it turns out there are a lot of jobs that are made easier with flight.
Now, though, we have a video of an actual jet pack in the sense they were always envisioned, complete with a set of jets on the back and two separate stabilizers controlled by the arms. There is limited information on the jet pack itself, except for the fact it is created by Gravity Industries, the same company that has been providing the suits and training for the aforementioned jetsuit adventures.
What makes this flight interesting, however, is that most Gravity suits reserve the backpack spot for fuel, powering two powerful engines on either arm to propel the wearer into the air. This time, it appears a series of engines were also added onto the back.
While the flight may look effortless (and a load of fun), it is no easy task. The jets attached to the arms mean that your entire bodyweight is resting on your upper body strength, so you best be bulking up before sending yourself through the air at 88.5 kilometers per hour (55 miles per hour) using the jetsuit.
It’s unclear whether this could be a new iteration of the suit, just that the pilot was Richard Browning, founder of Gravity Industries and chief test pilot.
While it’s mainly Browning that does the flying, Gravity does in fact make jetsuits custom fitted to order and trains the customer to use them. All it costs is the small price of $430,000 (£380,000) – maybe Iron Man suits are only for the Tony Starks of this world after all.
Source Link: Gravity Founder Shows Off New Jet Pack By Flying Around Chicago
