Daredevil Makes History Flying the English Channel on Jetpack
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Swiss daredevil Yves Rossy — known as “Fusion Man” and “Jet-man” — made history today when he flew from France to England to be the first person to cross the English Channel using nothing more than a jetpack strapped to his back.
Photo EPA
Jumping from a plane at more than 8,800 feet (2,500 meters) in the air above Calais, he fired up his jets and made the 22 mile (35 kilometer) trip between Calais and Dover at speeds of up to 120 mph (193 km/h) in 13 minutes.
Rossy was propelled by 4 kerosene-burning jet turbines attached to a wing on his back which he ignited inside the plane just prior to taking the leap, wearing a helmet and flameproof suit resembling those worn by Formula One drivers, to help him withstand the jet exhaust around his legs mounted merely inches from him on the wing.
After a period of free fall the former fighter pilot opened the wing and soared across the water.
The jetpack has no steering controls, so the only way for Rossy to change direction was like a bird, moving his head and back to control the wing’s movement.
Preparation … daredevil prepares for flight. Photo Sun
Photo Yves Rossy
Photo Yves Rossy
Rossy passed over a thin strip of land in front of South Foreland lighthouse, looped over onlookers and opened his parachute, his wings still strapped to his back.
At first nothing more than a speck in the clear blue autumn sky to scores of watchers, the real-life rocket man soon became recognizable to the cheering crowd as he soared over the White Cliffs of Dover.
After making several loops over the crowd, he opened his parachute and drifted down in light winds to land in a British field near the lighthouse where he was mobbed by the crowd, and secured his place in history.
Rossy needed a police escort from the field where he landed after he was mobbed by dozens of journalists and camera crews.
Photo Reuters / Kieran Doherty
Photo Reuters / Kieran Doherty
Swiss airline pilot Yves Rossy parachutes in to land, after becoming the first
person to cross the English Channel with a jetpack strapped to his back.
Photo Reuters / Kieran Doherty
“It was perfect. Blue sky, sunny, no clouds, perfect conditions.” he said. “We prepared everything and it was great.” said Rossy.
“I showed that it is possible to fly a little bit like a bird.”
Rossy traced the route of French aviator Louis Bleriot for his flight in Bleriot’s honor — the first person to fly across the Channel in an aircraft 99 years ago in 1909.
The lighthouse was the site of Guglielmo Marconi’s experiments with radio telegraphy in 1898. Bleriot used the white lighthouse as a target during his own pioneering flight.
Swiss airline pilot Yves Rossy parachutes in to land. Photo Reuters / Kieran Doherty
Rossy blasts into the record books. Photo Sun
Photo Reuters / Kieran Doherty
The 49-year-old pilot told the BBC that the tensest moment was when he jumped from the aircraft “because I did have many problems during exits before.”
But this time he made a perfect exit and quickly set the correct course by aiming for the cliffs of Dover, while a helicopter accompanied him during the journey.
“It’s a remarkable achievement; we saw the climax of his attempt as he came down to earth with his parachute. It’s been an exciting afternoon.” said Geoff Clark, an onlooker from Chatham, in Kent.
Photo Reuters / Kieran Doherty
Swiss airline pilot Yves Rossy gestures after becoming the first person to cross the English channel with a jetpack strapped to his back. Photo Reuters / Kieran Doherty
Fusion Man — dubbed as such because he’s half man, half bird — had to shelve his 2 previous attempts to enter the record books due to poor British weather.
With a mere 15 minutes before take-off to attempt the death-defying feat yesterday, Rossy told reporters gathered to watch that he was calling off the attempt due to a late build-up of cloud in the Dover area.
“I have only one life and I do not want to lose it.” said Rossy. “Sometimes it is hard to say no but the visibility is not so good.”
“My eyes are my best instruments and in these conditions it’s just too dangerous.”
But blue autumn skies today meant conditions were perfect. At 1:06 pm he folded his wings attached to his back, high-fived his crew and then made his record breaking journey above the French coast.
Swiss airline pilot Yves Rossy (C) is sprayed with champagne.
Photo Reuters / Kieran Doherty
Yves Rossy (C) is sprayed with champagne. Photo Reuters / Kieran Doherty
Rossy had to overcome significant challenges, not least the container ships passing through the Channel.
He had never flown for more than 10 minutes and his wing weight and measurements were precise, with even the addition of a tiny camera possibly affecting how long he could stay in the air.
Over the past few months, he’s been fine-tuning the wing’s design and performance and carried out several test flights in wind tunnels and the Swiss Alps.
He has taken 6 years to develop his jet wing and has been practicing for months, giving a stunning aerodynamic display in May, when he performed figure of 8’s high above the Alps.
Rossy made the jet-powered wing in his garage. Photo Sun
The Jet Man prepares for his flight in a wind tunnel. Photo Sun
The daredevil usually flies a Swiss International A320 Airbus between Zurich and Heathrow and he developed the jet-propelled device himself. The 8 foot wing is made of lightweight carbon composite and weighs about 120 pounds (55 kilos) when fully fueled by 4 simple, kerosene-burning jet turbines to keep him airborne, using a motorcycle grip to control thrust.
His future plans include flying over the Grand Canyon, taking off from a standing position on the ground and performing acrobatics.
Rossy told reporters that he wanted to continue making small planes with big engines. He hopes to create more powerful engines and a lighter wing that will enable him to climb vertically like a fighter jet and take off from the ground.
One day he hopes his invention will become common place and hopes to market his Jet Man wing to flying enthusiasts at a similar price to a micro-light aircraft, and to form a Red Arrow’s style display team.
Sources: Yahoo News and Telegraph
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Seriously, how cool is this? Dude s like a real-life Transformer – Jet Man – and the only thing cooler would be if he decides to market his flying wing suits so everyone can go all up, up & away! their own selves!
Wake me up when he can launch himself.
It may not mean much to you in the centre of the Universe (in the good old USA), but he travelled FROM France to the UK, landing in England.
Woody would say: “That’s not flaying, that’s falling with style”… but a wonderful stunt
Ooops, that was a typo, thanks for correcting me, Chris
Wow, once he’s able to take off on his own, it’ll be what I’ve been dreaming about my whole life.
Thanks for the article !