A daredevil French inventor yesterday failed in his attempt to fly across the English Channel from France to England standing on a jet-powered “flyboard,” having to be rescued after falling into the sea, his team said.
Franky Zapata, 40, a former jet-ski champion, took off successfully from Sangatte in northern France, but then fell into the Channel during a tricky mid-sea refueling stop, a member of his team said.
Zapata had planned to land in England near Dover after a flight of just 20 minutes.
Photo: Reuters
The refueling was always set to be one of the trickiest parts of the operation and Zapata appeared have made contact with the refueling platform due to the waves, forcing him into the sea.
The flyboard is fueled by kerosene stored in the rider’s backpack.
Zapata carried 47kg of it, but as that would only take him part of the way across the Channel, he needed to pick up a new backpack in mid-Channel for the second half of the trip.
In a scene resembling a science fiction movie, Zapata had zoomed into the sky to begin his attempt wearing a full body suit, helmet and clutching a control device.
In a tribute to past aviation heroes, Zapata had picked the day that marks 110 years since pioneer Louis Bleriot made the first airplane flight across the English Channel on July 25, 1909.
He had hoped to make the 35km crossing in 20 minutes, keeping an average speed of 140kph at a height of 15m to 20m above the water.
His plan hit problems initially as the French maritime authorities refused to give the project their blessing — while stopping short of an outright ban — due to busy shipping traffic in the Channel, but the maritime authorities said they lifted their “unfavorable opinion” after receiving guarantees from Zapata about his refueling and safety plans.
Zapata sprung to national prominence at the July 14 Bastille Day military parade when he soared above the Place de la Concorde in Paris in front of world leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
He carried a rifle during that demonstration and the French Ministry of Defense said it was studying how the flyboard could be used by its troops.
“We created a new way of flying. We don’t use wings. You are like a bird, it is your body that is flying. It is a boyhood dream,” Zapata told reporters ahead of the Channel flight. “We want to follow a little bit in the footsteps of the pioneers of aviation.”
Zapata’s flyboard, which is about the size of a skateboard, is powered by five small jet engines that allow the rider to fly at speeds of 190kph.
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