Waterman Meets Jetman

Geneva, Switzerland | June 2, 2009

It was an impromptu meeting of ambassadors to two distinct elements: Air and Water. An unlikely occurence, considering the busy schedule of both men who regularly travel the globe in pursuit of incredible feats.

When Yves Rossy starts talking about his passion, it's simply baffling. He earned his Jetman designation because he is the first person to have ever sustained a human flight using a jet-powered fixed-wing strapped to his back. Yes, you read correctly. His first flight of the sort, which lasted nearly 6 minutes, took place in November 2006 in Bex, Switzerland. He later partnered with Hublot Watches to break his record by flying across the English Channel, on 26 September 2008. That flight lasted 9 minutes and 7 seconds, reaching a speed of 200 kilometers (125 mph) during the crossing. This historic flight was broadcasted live on the Internet.

Yves Rossy has an obvious affinity for Eol's element, being that he also flies planes. His resume speaks for itself:

• former fighter pilot in the Swiss Air Force (Dassault Mirage IIIs, Northrop F-5 Tiger IIs, Hawker Hunters).
• former First Officer for Swissair (Boeing 747)
• current Captain for Swiss International Air Lines (Airbus A320)

He likens the sensations he gets while flying his jet-powered wing to being a bird. "Flying in a plane is not flying. When you are 30'000 feet above sea-level, watching your movie and sipping on a drink, you are not flying". Considering that it is -50°C at that altitude and that oxygen is rare, he is completely right. In fact, he considers flying airplanes like being in a submarine or on scuba. When Yves Rossy flies his wing, he says he is like the freediver who feels part of his element, moving his body ever so slightly to immediately change the course of his flight. "I want my body to cause the change of directions in the air, not a remote control controling my wing".

A jet wing flight is no small feat. First, Yves Rossy must board a plane, usually a Pilatus, and strap himself into his bulky equipment. At 3'000 meters, before he jumps off the plane, he starts off his jet engines, on the footsteps of the Pilatus. Then, he jumps off and opens his still-folded wing tips to better control his initial fall. And so he and starts to fly... up... down... left... right.. every which way he feels like going,. complete freedom, within the constraints of the weather of course. After about 8 minutes, he must launch his parachute to land with his 35-kilo equipment still strapped to his back. Talk about rough landing ! This man has got courage.

Far below the surface of the sea, yet not as far as the altitude reached by Jetman, freedivers get to experience the freedom to move underwater, at one with their element. Free from constraining and noisy equipment. As close as Yves Rossy is to feel like a bird, freedivers are as close to being like distant relatives, marine mammals. They too have to return to the surface to take a new breath.

But unlike birds which can fly for hours on end, Yves Rossy has to land minutes after the beginning of his flight. Freedivers too are superceeded by their marine friends. Consider that sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) can stay underwater for up to two hours holding a single breath.

Let's face it. We are only humans.