
It has long been a fascination in James Bond movies but in reality it never really got off ground.
Until now. Glenn Martin believes he has come up with a one-man flying machine that actually works. The Martin Jet Pack has made its public debut at AirVenture, the world’s biggest air show.
It didn’t travel very far (50ft), very high (6ft), or for very long (45 seconds) but that wasn’t the purpose of the exercise, according to its inventor.
‘I wanted to prove that the technology works,’ said Mr Martin. ‘Six feet or 600ft, it makes no difference once you get airborne.
Glenn hopes to start selling for $100,000 each next year.
This ‘ducted fan’ design is more efficient than a helicopter rotor.
The right lever is the accelerator, the engine start-and-stop switch, and a button for the emergency parachute, located behind the pilot’s head.
Mr Martin recently gained backing from a group of venture capitalists and quit his regular job as a biochemist to develop his machine.
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