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**AzH** · 03-25-07, 09:05 AM

A Swiss pilot has turned himself into a 'rocketman' by strapping a pair of wings and two jet engines to his back.

Yves Rossy, 45, a former airforce fighter pilot, gave his carbon wings their first test flight in Spain /Europics

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Yves Rossy, 45, a former airforce fighter pilot, gave his carbon wings their first test flight in Spain.

He said: "It is absolutely fantastic. Total freedom in three dimensions, so much speed and power, it was better than being a bird.

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"I have to jump from a moving plane as I can't really take off from an airfield like a real plane, I couldn't run that fast", he said laughing, and added: "I don't have an undercarriage either."

To land he has to cut the engines and coast to the ground, using a conventional parachute at the last minute.

Mr Rossy spent five years developing his three metre carbon fibre wings for his flying man project, then added two kerosene-powered jet engines to his original wing design.

Handles are fixed onto the wings so that Yves can electronically manipulate the wingtips, giving him the freedom to decide when he wanted to either glide or dive.

He said: "After I jumped my wings opened like a bird taking wing, I then glided down to 2500m, and ignited the kerosene engines.

"There was a short period, 30 seconds, while I waited for them to stabilize and then I began to open the throttle.

"I soon realised I was no longer losing height, and achieved horizontal flight for more than four minutes at 100 knots (115mph)."

I want to have a go!!