Becoming Iron Man

The endeavour of human flight has kept inventors occupied for centuries, especially since the Wright brothers successfully flew the world’s first aeroplane. Planes may now be commonplace, but the challenge of getting humans off the ground without a giant metal tube and some in-flight complimentary peanuts is just getting started.

Richard Browning is at the forefront of this incredible movement with Gravity Industries (gravity.co), the company he founded to develop the Jet Suit, a $600,000 jet-engine powered machine that enables him to fly. On his own. No need for a plane here, folks.

We recently visited the Gravity HQ and lab in Wiltshire to meet Richard and some of his team, and to get the inside track on how a seemingly unattainable dream, a flight of fantasy, if you will, actually became one of the most insanely cool inventions we’ve covered in these pages. Oh, and that’s before heading out