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Footage shared online shows the two sailors flying over the Harbour in jet packs before boarding back the Royal Navy warship. The pair can be seen hovering over the port as they head towards Britain’s most powerful vessel in history. The two servicemen were filmed smiling at each other, both donning a helmet-steered weapons mount and tactical jet suits.
The Gravity Industries suits use more than 1000bhp of Jet Engine power and have been “likened to the real-life Iron Man.”
The showcase was part of the Anglo-American military, political and strategic relations summit Atlantic Future Forum (AFF) which was held aboard HMS Queen Elizabeth.
Chief Test Pilot Richard Browning said: “The team and I are delivering on the vision to build Gravity into a world-class aeronautical engineering business, challenge perceived boundaries in human aviation, and inspire a generation to dare ask ‘what if…'”
Mr Browning, who previously served in the British Royal Marines, previously flew a 5-engine jet pack around the British battleship in 2020.
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Gravity said the suit is still in the experimental stages but is being designed to “provide extremely rapid access to any part of the target vessel, instantly freeing up hands to bear a weapon, and even retaining the capability to relocate on target or self-exfiltrate.”
In a press release, the company said: “This is increasingly seen as a revolution in tactical capability for many special forces and has much broader application beyond Maritime boarding.”
The Royal Navy said the suits are “undoubtedly impressive” but experts have said adoption by the armed forces is still not on the cards.
Lieutenant Colonel Will Clarke, RM, who sponsored the trial, said the project “shows significant promise and we will watch its development with continued interest.”
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Discussing the possibility of bringing the jet pack suit out into wider public domain, Mr Browning said: “It would be like taking a NASCAR or Formula One car down to Walmart.
“You could, but no one would.”
In terms of regulation, the company argues the jet packs do not currently fall under any aviation category, therefore permissions to fly the suits are not required.
They confirmed they are however working closely with regulators and their website reports on its website that all of its flights are approved by the Federal Aviation Administration.
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