Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

NASA Develops 1-Person 'Flying Suit'

If Puffin aircraft works, welcome to the jetpack era

By John Johnson,  Newser Staff

Posted Jan 23, 2010 5:19 AM CST
Email

(Newser) – It exists only on paper at the moment, but NASA's Puffin aircraft just might bring the jetpack age into reality. Engineers "have combined every one of our geeky transportation dreams into a single little vehicle," writes Jason Paur. "It takes off like a helicopter and flies like a plane. It can cruise at 140 mph and, with a boost mode, hit about twice that. Oh—and it’s electric," he writes for Wired.

NASA, which unveiled the concept this week, plans to have a demonstrator model working by March. It's like a "flying suit or a jetpack with a cockpit," notes Charles Q. Choi of Scientific American. Figure about 50 miles per charge and the ability to climb 30,000 feet. "It’s safe to say that if this bird flies—and that’s a very big if—we’ll no longer be dreaming of having our own jetpack," writes Paur.

NASA's Puffin could up in the air for real in March, or at least a working model of it.
NASA's Puffin could up in the air for real in March, or at least a working model of it.
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
A video of the Puffin's conceptual design.   (YouTube)

View larger videos >>
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next »
My TakeCLICK BELOW TO VOTE
4%
18%
2%
70%
3%
3%
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
A snapshot of the day's best news stories.
 
COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 41 comments
YetAnotherCollegeKid
Jan 25, 2010 7:28 AM CST
Yep, that's not much. Fortunately, there are a lot of other power sources that could supplement the battery. Someone was talking about a small propane engine; frankly, a pair of simple two stroke gasolines would do the job just fine. This is really nothing but an experimental design that could be easily hitched to 60 year old technology for power.
YetAnotherCollegeKid
Jan 25, 2010 7:20 AM CST
...or you could just do the same thing with a truck, more easily. Pretty sure that is called a 'truck bomb', and is fairly unusual in America. Are we supposed to fear every new invention because somebody may try to use it to kill people? Fear the deadly Hybrid car! It is new, it must be evil!
YetAnotherCollegeKid
Jan 25, 2010 7:15 AM CST
NASA- National Aeronautics and Space Administration. IE planes and spacecraft. They are focusing on what they are supposed to focus on.

 
NASA • flight • aviation • jetpack • Puffin aircraft

More Newser Stories

The Ability to Fly: Yours for $100K

NASA Aims to Stifle the Sonic Boom

Fighter Jet Dazzles Airshow
NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   Betty Confidential   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Fark   |   Timelines   |   The Frisky   |   Geek Sugar   |   NewsOne