5,000 People Witness First Public Flight

EAA officials report as many as 5,000 eager spectators were on hand Tuesday morning on AeroShell Square to witness the first public flight of the much-anticipated Martin Jetpack... and having been among that crowd ourselves, we think that number might even be slightly low.

In fact, organizers seemed a bit surprised with the large turnout, as the assembled throngs were slowly moved out of the way to make room for the demo flight at show center, forcing some against the barriers placed around AeroShell's other "big" attraction Tuesday, the Boeing Dreamlifter.

Any crowd discomfort was assuaged, however, when Harrison Martin took the "stage" wearing the somewhat bulky contrapiction strapped to his back. Despite its high-flying name, the Martin Jetpack isn't a jet pack at all. Actually, it's closer in concept to a wearable Moller Aircar... with a small two-stroke engine providing power to twin ducted fans, one mounted on either side of the wearer's body.

Harrison, 16, lit the engines just before 10 am Oshkosh time... and for the next 55 seconds or so, hovered more-or-less in place about two feet off the ground, as spectators (including us) held their cameras high overhead, hoping to catch a shot of the impressive feat.

Glenn Martin -- Harrison's dad, and the contraption's inventor -- hopes to sell his first 10 jetpacks for $100,000 each. We've little doubt he'll pull that off, especially given the crowd's reaction. Martin's Web site has struggled to handle the influx of hits, as well.

"When I was 5 years old, I was watching 'The Jetsons,' 'Lost in Space' and all those TV programs, and I wanted a jetpack," Martin told the Chicago Tribune ahead of Tuesday's flight.

Defined as an ultralight by FAA regs -- meaning you don't need a license to fly one -- the Martin Jetpack can be operated on regular autogas and fly as long as 30 minutes, according to the inventor.

FMI: www.martinjetpack.com, www.airventure.org