Pilots are familiar with sharing the sky with birds and drones. However, on Sunday, two commercial pilots reported sighting a new kind of danger in the sky while approaching Los Angeles International Airport, a flying man on a jet pack.
“Tower, American 1997, we just passed a guy in a jet pack,” one of the pilots told air traffic control on Sunday.
The pilot, who was flying American Airlines Flight 1997 told the air traffic controller that the flying man was about 270 metres (300 yards) on the plane’s left side.
Barely a minute later, another pilot told the air traffic controller that he had seen a man pass by.
The second pilot was flying JetBlue Flight 23.
Following the report, the Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Federal Aviation Administration have launched investigations into the incident.
While the incident may scare commercial pilots because of safety concerns, it seems a new age for space travel is being heralded.
Last week, a Japanese company called SkyDrive tested a single-seat prototype for its electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicle, alias, a flying car.
The flying car, SD-03, landed in a spot the size of two parking spaces and in production will have two seats, for a pilot and passenger.
The company has the backing of Japanese motor vehicle giant Toyota and plans to have flying taxis in the air by 2023.
