'Flyboard' wows Paris crowds during Bastille Day parade along Champs-Elysees
5 years, 6 months ago

'Flyboard' wows Paris crowds during Bastille Day parade along Champs-Elysees

ABC  

A French inventor and entrepreneur celebrated Bastille Day by soaring above the Champs-Elysees on a turbine engine-powered "flyboard" in front of President Emmanuel Macron and other EU leaders. Former jet-skiing champion Franky Zapata, grasping a rifle in a sign of the possible military uses of his device, took to the air in a futuristic showpiece of the annual parade to celebrate France's national day. French Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly told France Inter radio ahead of the parade that the flyboard "can allow tests for different kinds of uses, for example as a flying logistical platform or, indeed, as an assault platform". Mr Zapata aims to make the crossing on July 25, 110 years to the day after pioneering aviator Louis Bleriot made the first powered flight across the Channel, in a monoplane.

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History of this topic

French inventor Franky Zapata crashes home-made hoverboard into lake
2 years, 7 months ago

French inventor Franky Zapata crashes home-made hoverboard into lake

ABC  

Franky Zapata, a French inventor who created his own hoverboard, has been injured after losing control while 15 metres in the air. Key points: The 43-year-old inventor sustained minor injuries after his fall He said after the crash it was a reminder that "if we are not excellent, it's gravity that wins" In 2019 he crossed the English Channel on …

French hoverboard inventor flies over the English Channel
5 years, 5 months ago

French hoverboard inventor flies over the English Channel

Associated Press  

ST. MARGARET’S BAY, England — Is it a bird? Propelled by a power pack full of kerosene, Zapata set off from Sangatte in France’s Pas de Calais region and landed in St. Margaret’s Bay, beyond the white cliffs of Dover, in southeast England. “I tried to enjoy it and not think about the pain.” Witness Mark Kerr, a 60-year-old hospital …

Air-board inventor makes it more than halfway across Channel
5 years, 5 months ago

Air-board inventor makes it more than halfway across Channel

Associated Press  

SANGATTE, France — Looking like a superhero, the French inventor of an airborne hoverboard glided partway over the English Channel on his personal flying machine then crashed in the sea Thursday. After being rescued from the Channel’s choppy waters, Zapata smiled and said, “We won’t give up until we succeed.” Zapata took off to cross the Channel from the French …

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