Chinese Engineer Builds 'Iron Man' Jetpack for $100,000
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A man from China called Liu Dongsheng has built a working jetpack suit that greatly resembles the one made by UK-based Gravity Industries.
Impressively, the engineer pulled off his dream project in only two years' time with a relatively small sum of $100,000.
Liu Dongsheng's dream project
Much like the Gravity Industries jetpack, which has recently been tested for speedy emergency response in the Lake District, Liu's suit has a pair of jets fixed to the ends of each arm as well as a fuel tank strapped to the back.
RELATED: THE FLYING IRON MAN JETSUIT HAS NOW BEEN KITTED OUT WITH GUNS
As per China News Service, the jetpack has the capacity to reach altitudes of up to 200 meters and can cover five to ten kilometers (approximately 3 to 6 miles). However, for safety reasons, Liu has only gone as high as three meters in tests so far — some of which have seen the Tony Stark-enthusiast strapped to a rope while flying his machine.
Inspired by sci-fi, comics
Liu is, indeed, a fan of "Iron Man" — he says the idea for the jetpack suit was partly inspired by his love for comics and sci-fi movies as a child.
A video of the suit in action appeared in the accompanying article by state-owned China News Service. You can watch the video of Liu in action below.
Meet Liu Dongsheng, a Chinese man who spent two years and 700,000 yuan (about $104,252) creating a jet suit to fulfill his dream of flying. #AmazingFeat pic.twitter.com/EN2lZ2VsGx
— China News 中国新闻网 (@Echinanews) October 30, 2020
Of course, anyone who has even a passing interest in jetpack suits will know that Liu's model isn't the first of its kind in recent years. Gravity Industries, founded in 2017 by Richard Browning, has set several speed records over the last few years.
Recent reports have also emerged of a man using a jetpack flying dangerously close to LAX airport. These are, indeed, strange times we're living in.
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