The pilot known as 'jetman' is confident he will make aviation history once again Wednesday. Yves Rossy is hoping to become the first person to make an intercontinental flight with a jet pack by crossing the Straits of Gibraltar.
The Swiss airline pilot and aviation inventor told a news conference: "It's going to be historic" before adding "no one has ever done this before."
Rossy will launch his record attempt from the skies above Tangier in Morocco.
He will start by jumping out of a light airplane when it reaches a height 6,500 feet above the ground.
Once airborne he will unleash his wings and fire up his engines.
He hopes to land safely on a beach in southern Spain about 15 minutes later.
The wing itself — which was designed by Rossy — is made of carbon fiber.
With fuel it weighs around 132 pounds, and because of the dangers involved, he wears a flame retardant suit.
When flying, Rossy looks like a comic book hero with the contraption propelling him at a speed of more than 180 mph.
May 14, 2008: Yves Rossy, known as the 'Fusion Man,' flies with a jet-powered single wing over the Alps in Bex, Switzerland.He will be followed throughout the attempt by a team of paramedics in a helicopter.
They are on hand should anything go wrong in the skies above the turbulent waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
Rossey has made a number of successful record-breaking attempts in the past.
Last year, he flew from Calais to Dover crossing the English Channel.
source: foxnews.com
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