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Title: You Must See This Historic Flight
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Published: May 16, 2008
Author: wired
Post Date: 2008-05-16 21:47:16 by tom007
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Views: 215
Comments: 14
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Playing to a mesmerized audience, Swiss pilot and adventurer (some might say nutcase) Yves Rossy has soared above the Alps with homemade jet-powered wings strapped to his back. Rossy, an extreme sports guy who has spent years assembling his wings, casually stepped out of an airplane at 7,500 feet, unfolded the wings and quickly passed from free fall to mellow glide. He then fired up the wings' engines and accelerated to more than 180 mph. As if that weren't cool enough, Rossy showed off a bit, making a few dives, some figure eights and a 360-degree barrel roll before landing at an airfield near Lake Geneva. "That was to impress the girls," he said after the five-minute flight. It's not your average DIY project, but then again Rossy doesn't seem to be your average guy. One look at the video proves that. Fusionman, as the 47-year-old adventurer calls himself, is intimately familiar with flight. As a military pilot he spent years flying Hunter, Tiger F-5 and Mirage III jets, and he flies airliners for Swiss International Airlines. He's spent several years developing the carbon fiber wing, which is eight feet long and features four German jet engines that provide 200 pounds of thrust. Rossy and his sponsors, which include the Swiss watch company Hublot, have spent $190,000 on the project, and with no plans to bring the wing to market, there's no guarantee they'll get a return on their investment. The flight above the Alps was a big test for Fusionman and his wings, and it went off without a hitch. His mother wasn't even worried, explaining to the Associated Press, "He knows what he's doing." But it hasn't always been smooth sailing -- er, flying -- for Rossy. Damage to a set of test wings in 2007 forced him to build another prototype, and he lost control during a jump three years ago and didn't deploy his chute until he was a mere 1,500 feet above the ground. Soaring above the Alps is only the start. Rossy is planning to cross the English Channel -- a flight of about 23 miles -- by the end of the year. But his dream is to fly over the Grand Canyon. Photos from Rossy's website.
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