They promised us all jetpacks — these guys got them and took them to one of the world’s most remarkable locales. And you get to ride along if you dare.
The latest eye-popping (and possibly stomach-churning) video from Yves Rossy (aka the Jetman) shows the Swiss daredevil inventor and his new sidekick soaring in formation over desert sands and Dubai’s awesome skyline with nothing but jetpacks and a total lack of fear.
Rossy has flown over the Grand Canyon, Japan’s Mount Fuji and other amazing locations, but this might be his most astonishing video yet.
The 12-minute jetpack video, titled Young Feathers, serves as a breathtaking introduction to Rossy’s new partnership with 31-year-old skydiving champion Vince Reffet. The two plan to perform more tandem aerial flights in the future to show off the amazing capabilities of Rossy’s invention.
“Skydiving is my heart. I come from this world,” Reffet told Khaleej Times. “But unfortunately in skydiving there is the free fall; it lasts seconds. But with the jet wing, I can fly for 10 minutes and go wherever I want. It’s so beautiful.”
The jetpacks worn by the pair are powered by four tiny jet engines that leave beautiful contrails swirling around Dubai’s stunning architecture. Weighing 120 pounds and with a 6.5-foot wingspan, the flying contraptions strap on like something The Falcon might wear. The jetpacks carry Rossy and Reffet at 110 miles per hour on ascent and over 180 mph on descent, according to Rossy’s website.
The new Dubai video was shot from a helicopter and with a helmet cam. The beautiful footage gives you an incredibly visceral feel for what it might be like to strap on a jetpack of your own.
“When you fly alone you see only the picture from the inside of your head,” Rossy said. “But when you fly in formation, you see the picture also from the outside, because the guy flying with you is exactly the same. You see both inside and outside. It’s another dimension.”
It’s thrilling beyond belief. Watch it at full-screen mode in 4K on a Retina machine if you can.
Via: The Verge
Lewis Wallace is the managing editor of Cult of Mac and author of our weekly newsletter, The Weekender.
He’s a San Francisco-based writer and editor specializing in technology and culture. He loves his iPhone, hates Siri, and appreciates any hardware that combines form and function.
Prior to Cult of Mac, he juggled words and ideas as culture editor at Wired.com, homepage editor at TechTV, news product manager at NBCi, copy editor at PC World, reporter at The (Hayward) Daily Review and editor in chief of EveryBody’s News in Cincinnati.
He earned a bachelor of general studies degree with a journalism certificate from the University of Cincinnati. While in school, he worked as the entertainment editor of The News Record and as editor in chief of Clifton Magazine.
He’s also a bass player, who’s recorded and performed around the United States with Those Darn Accordions, The Electric Boogie Dawgz and The Mad Maggies. When not writing, editing or laying down bass lines, he plays darts and serves on the board of the San Francisco Darts League.
3 responses to “Jetpack duo soars over Dubai in astonishing 4K video”
Good grief. That’s huge. Words fail me.
Very, Very, VERY cool. Awesome!
No need for retina. You can skip the first 1/2 – 6 mins – and not miss anything. Most of the footage is shot from the helicopter. You can skip the last minute too, so only 5 mins of worthwhile video here out of 12.