Oh, HERE'S My Jetpack

Kym of Thinking in Vain and Copyranter of Copyranter both alerted me to a story in the news today of an inventor in Mexico named Juan Manuel Lozano Gallegos, who claims to have invented a jetpack, or "RocketBelt," as he calls it.

Some problems:

• His only successful flights have been tethered, and even then, he's spinning uncontrollably just 4 feet off the ground.
• His design is a copy of the same jetpack invented in 1961, seen in an old James Bond film and at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles.
• His supposedly successful untethered flight is only shown in photos, and in those photos he is 2 inches off the ground.
• His RocketBelt weighs 70 lbs.
• His RocketBelt makes a noise very similiar to that of a real commercial jet.
• His RocketBelt will set you back $250,000, which he claims you can quickly make up through "special events, promotions, advertising, elections campaigns, concerts, movies, TV commercials etc."

It would seem Mr. Gallegos is really good at PR and managed to get some news outlets to pick up his story, hoping to make some fast (and big) cash off his amazing flying machine.

Not buying, Juan. Until these babies are lighter, cheaper, quieter - oh yeah - and ACTUALLY FLY, I am not your customer.

So, the blog title will remain what it is and the question is still a valid one.

I had something like these in mind.














Image above from the book Skyjets for Fliers of Tomorrow
©1954, by Albert Whitman & Company, Chicago.