What if, in the event of an emergency in the midst of hostile terrain, a paramedic could swoop in from the sky using a jetpack — and in doing so save lives along the way? This might sound like the stuff of superhero narratives, but this is not a dream, not a hoax and not an imaginary story. Instead, it’s something that’s very real, and something which was recently tested in the north of England.
The person behind this is Gravity Industries founder Richard Browning, an inventor with a penchant for racing jet suits in unexpected places. As The Guardian reports, in this instance Browning has applied the jet suit technology to a more public interest-focused purpose: enabling paramedics to reach ailing people trapped in remote locations — a lost hiker, for instance.
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The test took place in the UK’s Lake District and represented, as per the article, “the culmination of a year-long discussion between the ambulance charity, the Great North air ambulance service (GNAAS) and Gravity Industries.”
The exercise went well: Browning was able to locate a woman and a young girl within a few minutes. A comparable search for them on foot would have taken hours. Another possible scenario that the jet suit has been suggested for: providing care to someone situated at the top of a mountain.
The jet suits used for medical purposes will be customized, with a goal of having them in use next year.
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