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Thinking they can make a quick buck, a small-time thief bursts into a jewelry store and demands all their money. They stuff the haul into their bag and make off down the street, outrunning the police who are only now just getting into their cars. Except one. The thief looks behind and sees an officer flying at them at 137 km/h (85 mph), propelled by jet engines strapped to their limbs.
Fancy the thief's chances? The UK police force don’t either, which is why they have recently been testing out the Gravity Industries jet suit to catch crooks with ease.
In a demonstration of the potential applications of jet suits in policing, founder and Chief Test Pilot Richard Browning took to the skies in a simulated high-speed chase scenario. A man with a gun was stopped at a police checkpoint, but quickly makes a run for it, sprinting away. Browning is then called to action, who then powers up the suit and blasts past the criminal, landing in front and drawing a weapon to subdue them.
The demonstration was performed in front of police chiefs and government officials in Salisbury, England, and left many rather impressed – although Chair of National Police Chiefs Council Martin Hewitt called it a “bit noisy”. That’s the price you pay for 1,000 horsepower in two small jets.
