Jetman over the Channel

An attempt will be taking place around about now, for a man to fly across the English channel, powered by a jet-propelled wing. Following the route of Louis Bleriot 99 years ago, Yves Rossy is hoping to make the 22 mile journey in 12 minutes. Slightly more worrying than this is that his longest flight so far is only 10 minutes.

Rossy, a former Swiss Mirage pilot, who now flies an Airbus for a living, says he isn’t worried about the risks. Although he does acknowledge that “If I get it wrong, I take a bath”. Rossy also follows in the footsteps of Felix Baumgartner who, in 2003, glided across the channel attached to a wing. The main difference being that Baumgartner flew unpowered. He jumped out of a plane at 30,000 feet so that he had enough height to glide for the 22 miles, whereas Rossy will leave an aircraft at just above 8,000 feet.

Once he’s outside the aircraft the four kerosene burning engines which are attached to the wing will light, and he will (hopefully) fly across the Channel to land in Dover. I’ve got to admire him for having the courage to do it. Whilst it might not seem overly risky, if he hits the water at his top speed of 125 mph you have to assume the outcome won’t be good!