Swiss pilot and stuntman Yves Rossy (previously featured) who is nicknamed Jet Man for being the first person to fly using a jet-powered engine on his backpack, flew over the Grand Canyon in a jet suit, last Saturday. Rossy soared 200 feet above the Canyon rim to complete the eight-minute flight over a five-mile radius.
The custom-built jet suit that Rossy wears on his back weighs 120lb and has a 79" wing span. It averages speeds of 125mph and has four engines.
The 51-year-old had stepped casually onto the side of a helicopter before it took off and into the sky above Guano Point on the Hualapai Indian Reservation. Once it had reached 8,000 feet Rossy, who flew fighter jets for 17 years in the Swiss Air Force, simply let go, plummeting to the earth below before firing up his engines. Then, looking like a high-tech, Lycra-clad Icarus, he soared 200 feet above the canyon rim reaching speeds of up to 190mph before opening his parachute and landing safely on the canyon floor.
Rossy said the flight, which was his first in the U.S., was among the most memorable experiences of his life. Previously he has flown his jet suit across Lake Geneva in 2002 and the English Channel in 2008.
