A lift to the dream
Bell-like rocket pack is now on the market
OSHKOSH, Wis. –The first public flight of a futuristic personal jet pack on July 29 didn’t exactly conjure up images of “The Jetsons” flying saucer car, the power and grace of Superman soaring faster than a speeding bullet or the heroic Buck Rogers fighting evil warlords in outer space.
But the maiden launch of the Martin Jetpack, at the Experimental Aircraft Association’s AirVenture show here, nonetheless provided a lift to the dream that ordinary people could one day fly free, albeit not as naturally, as a bird.
And without wings or a pilot’s license.
The rocket-like human flight machine resembles the Bell Rocket Belt, which was developed by Bell Aerosystems of Buffalo in the 1950s. The Martin Jetpack, offered at the introductory price of about $100,000, is being marketed by the Martin Aircraft Co. of New Zealand as “the world’s first practical jet pack.”
It is powered by a 200-horsepower piston engine that runs on premium automobile fuel that can be purchased at a corner gas station. It is less volatile than some of the hydrogen mixtures that were used in earlier rocket packs, according to the manufacturer.
The engine is mounted directly behind the pilot, who for the premiere flight was 16-year-old Harrison Martin –the son of Jetpack inventor Glenn Martin, who has invested almost 30 years and untold dollars on the project.
“This is a proof-of-concept vehicle, experimental with a big ‘E,’ ” said Martin. “It’s still a newborn baby.”
Martin and his wife, Vanessa, who volunteered as the original Jetpack test pilot in the first of 11 prototypes, stood by proudly as Harrison, strapped into the machine and wearing a crash helmet with a face shield and a fireproof flight suit, repeatedly revved the engine, which roared like a motorcycle, to warm it up.
Martin said the Jetpack is capable of flying at up to a little more than 60 miles per hour for as long as a half-hour and possesses flight controls nimble enough for pilots to carve figure-eights and other patterns in the sky. But Martin Aircraft employees held onto the Jetpack as young Harrison engaged the throttle. The Jetpack immediately lifted off, teetering somewhat clumsily forward and side to side as it hovered A Bell Rocket Belt was piloted around Lafayette Square in 1965. Below, Glenn Martin, left, inventor of the Martin Jetpack, holds one of the safety bars fixed to the Jetpack being flown by his son, Harrison.
several feet off the ground during the flight demonstration.
The maneuver was an anticlimax to the buildup, and the presentation was kept brief –less than a minute –to ensure the safety of the crowd packed tightly around the Jetpack, Martin said.
Still, it represented one small step for what the machine’s creator hopes will become a giant leap for a whole new class of personal aircraft. Although the prototype still needs more flight testing, Martin hopes to deliver the first 10 Jetpacks next year. After the demonstration, he began accepting $10,000 deposits on the $100,000 personal aircraft from well-heeled enthusiasts. The deposits are fully refundable if he fails to deliver.
Martin’s company is also developing an approximately 10-day flight training program, which Jetpack buyers will be required to pass.
The Jetpack pilot uses a two-handed stick control system that appears similar to a computer
joystick. One hand controls the Jetpack’s pitch and roll, while the other hand controls the throttle to raise up and lower the Jetpack.
As a safety measure, the Jetpack is equipped with a parachute that can be deployed in an emergency. The Jetpack design includes an undercarriage with shock absorbers to protect the pilot. “We call our undercarriage the Pogostick, so if you land hard it absorbs the energy for you,” Martin said.
The half-hour flight time that the Jetpack can operate between refueling is 100 times longer than the Bell Rocket Belt, which can remain airborne for only 26 seconds.
