Mia McClintic

Flying High
The wind in your hair, the breathtaking view of the world thousands of miles beneath your feet. Blue skies and white clouds at eye level, youre flying as high as a bird! And no, Im not talking about that feeling you get after sniffing one too many of those scented markers. Im talking about real flying in the air, no windows or metal doors in between you and the open sky! Flying on a brand new version of an old invention. A device that maybe youre familiar with. The jet pack. No longer objects of James Bond movies and science fiction novels, jetpacks are being brought down to reality through the Martin Aircraft company. These high-flying devices are the first of their kind to be available to the Average Joes of the world. But before you can strap into your own high flier, well take off from the beginning of jet packs, soar through what the Martin Jetpack specifically is, and finally land in the advantages and disadvantages of this fantasy made real. Believe it or not, James Bond wasn't the first to publicize the jetpack. The US Military actually first sparked America's interest. Although the invention of the airplane in 1903 caused much American excitement, by 1949, the army got bored with the giant device and began to research the possibilities of inventing a smaller, more portable flier. According to an article How Jetpacks Work by Ed Grabianowski, The Ordnance Rocket Center at Redstone was in charge of the program. Their goal was a back-mounted device that could propel a single soldier into the air. This goal was achieved in 1952, when Thomas Moore effectively tested a device that launched himself a couple feet off the ground for a few seconds. As exciting as this probably was to ride, soldiers would have been safer in battle on a pogo stick. Luckily, six years later, a new device called the Jumpbelt was launched in Georgia, engineered by Garry Burdett and Alexander Bohr (not to be confused with Niels Bohr, the man you have to thank for all those BOHR-ing models we draw in Chemistry class. Get it? Okay..) The jumpbelt had a slightly longer flight time and reached 23 feet high, which could fly you to about the 2nd floor of the Chicago Willis Tower. Out of 110. The Jumpbelt was good, but we could do better. The closest that the army has to a "jetpack" right now is the Trek Springtail device. Trek Aerospace's own web site proclaims that this full body-sized

single-seater will be useful in combat situations that require navigating narrow areas. But no, dodging freshman through the halls of your High School to get to class on time does not qualify you to use the Springtail, which is designed strictly for combat, and is currently only being used for training purposes. All the jetpacks produced in the last decade have been for demonstrations or stunt scenes in movies. Well, at least until now. From humble beginnings in creator Glenn Martins garage, the Martin Jetpack has finally reached its goal of becoming the worlds first practical jetpack. Then again, most great inventions start out in a garage. If only my mom would recognize it as that instead of trash...Anyway, Glenn's mom must've been more patient, because the Martin Jetpack has been in the making for over 30 years. The device, which stands 5 feet tall and 5 and a half feet wide, is predicted to start delivery in mid 2011. It allows fliers to soar up to 8000 feet into the air, which could fly you to height of 5 Sears Oh, I mean Willis - Towers stacked on top of each other! A definite improvement from the jumpbelt. According to the Martin Jetpack website, this design is the simplest air module possible. Pitch and roll are controlled by one hand. When you tilt this controller forward, a small fan on the bottom of the pack tilts forward as well, launching you in that direction. Yaw and the throttle can be operated by the other hand. This handle controls the wings, and how high or low you fly. See? So easy, Paula Abdul could do it! Now, I know what youre picturing. A bunch of normal, everyday people cruising through the air on their very own Martin Jetpacks to school, to work, and speech meets, of course. And will this be real? Not necessarily at first. I mean, when Segways were invented, most people expected them to take the place of cars as well, but they turned out to only be used by tour guides and infamous mall cops. Hopefully jetpacks will have more success, but either way it will be awhile until airways are safe and organized. Therefore, the use of jetpacks will be purely recreational at first. So change your vision to people flying in long, open fields and such. Although these classified Ultralights do not require a pilot's liscence in America, fliers must pass the unique Martin Aircraft training program. The Martin Jetpack Website doesn't specify any age requirements, either. Which is pretty cool, because I'm personally planning on flying a jetpack into my sweet 16. Take that, MTV brats. Although showing off like this is reason enough to buy one of these things right now, there are both advantages and disadvantages that a potential buyer should understand before purchasing. Price, believe it or not, is an advantage. For the

amount you'd pay to "fly" down the road in that mega horsepower Lamborghini, you can literally fly, wherever, on your very own jetpack. All in all, after ten payments, you will have invested ninety thousand dollars in your new transportation device. Another good part of the deal is that instead of running on something fancy and expensive, the jetpacks run on classic gasoline. Martin jetpacks are safe, too. They come with an internal roll cage that protects the pilot from side impact in the event of a crash landing. The device also features parachutes that automatically release in situations of danger, kind of like an airbag. Safety, however, can also be a disadvantage. As safe as these devices were designed to be, the Martin Jetpack website itself declares that any airborne movement entails a degree of risk. Just like driving a car or flying first class, flying a Martin Jetpack involves the danger of crashing. And theres another problem. Although you may be super excited to fly your jetpack to work as soon as you get it, where are you going to land? Public places havent exactly built landing hangers for those civilians who decide to take flight. Although the US Federal Aviation Administration is developing a highways in the sky 3D highway system based on GPS tracks, this is not likely to be implemented for at least 10 years. So until then, youll be very restricted as to where you can show off your high tech gear. But maybe its worth it. After all, you know you've always dreamed of flying country to country in mere minutes like Iron Man, saving the country from evil wrongdoers. Or maybe thats just me. As transportation has progressed over time, more and more exciting technologies are being produced to make life easier on everyone. The invention of the first practical jet pack is only adding to this. Who knows, by the time were all judging these speeches instead of giving them, maybe youll be flying your jetpack to meets. No matter when this technology is usable, you have to agree, its exciting. I hope you enjoyed your flight today, after taking off from the history of jet packs in general, flying high while you learned about the Martin Jetpack, and being gently lowered, or free falling until your parachute catches you to the benefits and drawbacks of this brilliant invention. All in all, you may not want to get a car when you turn 16. Why not save up for a jet pack? Thanks to new advancements, in a matter of years, everyone will be flying high.