The Spainfuture of military tactics just keeps getting more and more Tony Stark-like by the day.
Royal Marines have teamed up with British company Gravity Industries to successfully use a jetsuit to board an in-motion military ship off the south coast of the UK.
The jetsuit was flown multiple times in an exercise meant to test its capability to support maritime boarding operations. The tests were conducted over three days by the Gravity team, including founder and chief test pilot Richard Browning, along with 42 commando Royal Marines aboard HMS Tamar, an offshore patrol vessel of the Royal Navy.
In the video above, watch as the test pilot stands at the bow of the speeding rib boat, then lifts into the air using the suit, flies untethered toward the military ship, and easily touches down on the deck — here's a handy video about how the suits actually work. The pilot then simply and quickly unlocks from the hand devices before throwing a ladder over the side for a waiting marine, who climbs up the side from the rib boat.
Maritime boarding operations, according to Gravity Industries, typically involve a fast rib boat moving closer and closer to a high-sided ship, and accessing it through a caving ladder thrown up and over the side. It's a slow and shaky process, with the only alternative means of boarding involving the use of a helicopter. The use of the jetsuit would boost the speed of these operations, and enable access to any part of the ship, even letting pilots adjust where they have landed by simply taking off again — in a very Iron Man move.
The team conducted many training exercises before the test, and the video footage is the stuff of dreams (for anyone who dreams of flying around in the middle of the ocean with a few mates):
Gravity Industries have been testing the marine boarding ability for months, most recently completing a trial with the Netherlands Maritime Special Operations Force.
The company has also previously collaborated with the UK's Great North Air Ambulance Service to test deploying airborne paramedics in search and rescue missions, enabling them to reach people in difficult terrain as quickly as 90 seconds — much faster and more specifically than a helicopter could.
Each Gravity jetsuit costs roughly $430,000 (£340,000), so it would be a significant chunk of military budget if the Royal Marines decide to incorporate these into their tactics.
The Best CPU & GPU Purchases of 2017
Shane Dawson somehow gets you to feel bad for Jake Paul in part 6 of his docu
The long journey of America's first Olympian to compete in a hijab
The long journey of America's first Olympian to compete in a hijab
Best LG B4 OLED TV deal: Save $200 at Best Buy
Chrissy Teigen helps Kim Kardashian mourn the loss of her BlackBerry
Ryan Coogler will return to write and direct 'Black Panther 2'
Beyoncé helped Amandla Stenberg reach nirvana with the greatest compliment of all time
Brest vs. PSG 2025 livestream: Watch Champions League for free
Beyoncé helped Amandla Stenberg reach nirvana with the greatest compliment of all time
Then and Now: Six Generations of $200 Mainstream Radeon GPUs Compared
Twitter's Jack Dorsey doesn't use a computer or a tablet
The amazing story of a boy finding his missing mother on YouTube
The first Zika vaccine trials are underway, but research funding is running out
Then and Now: 5 Generations of GeForce Graphics Compared
Why Season 22 of 'South Park feels like a total game
The amazing story of a boy finding his missing mother on YouTube
President Obama got pumped up for his DNC speech to Eminem's 'Lose Yourself'
Elon Musk told Donald Trump what to do about the Paris Climate Agreement
Watch from the cockpit as scientists enter Hurricane Michael's eye
Windows 11 vs. Windows 10 Performance: Gaming and ApplicationsThe Oura Ring chronotype feature put me to sleep (in a good way)Got VR? Must Have VR GamesWhat is Crypto Mining?NYT Connections Sports Edition hints and answers for June 15: Tips to solve Connections #265How CPU Cores & Cache Impact Gaming PerformanceAgainst All Odds: How Nintendo Made ItHow to unblock Pornhub for free in KansasPSG vs. Atletico Madrid 2025 livestream: Watch Club World Cup for freeBest Fire Stick deal: Save $20 on Fire Stick 4K MaxGoogle Drive Alternatives: Improving Privacy and SecurityGameStop settlement email: How to get a $5 refund or a $10 credit'Deliver At All Costs' review: Chatioc fun with a nonsensical storyToday's Hurdle hints and answers for June 15, 2025The Oura Ring chronotype feature put me to sleep (in a good way)Today's Hurdle hints and answers for June 15, 2025Why Incognito Mode and Private Browsing are Not PrivateWordle today: The answer and hints for June 15, 2025Got VR? Must Have VR GamesBayern Munich vs. Auckland City 2025 livestream: Watch Club World Cup for free Alexa can notify you if it's figured out an answer it didn't know before 'No Man's Sky Next' review: Your own, personal star trek is too dull The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games will have large 9 times Britain was completely, 100% decided on Brexit Johnny Depp's Notorious B.I.G. movie disappears from release schedule Hey Adora from 'Sharp Objects', what is your damage? Why Elon Musk can get away with tweeting about Tesla's business plans The latest beauty craze? Full Bear makes trespassing cute by jumping into a private pool Dogs throw raging summer luau party in pool full of tennis balls Murdering its mascot, and other ways Brazil is already ruining the Olympics U.S. Defense Department developing tools to catch deepfakes 11 things we don't understand after seeing Blake Lively in 'The Shallows' Taylor Swift and Bryan Adams tag team Summer of '69 in a perfect duet Why some baby boomers are eating up the QAnon conspiracy Apple patents show three possible futures for the MacBook keyboard Facebook browser share Tessa Thompson's 'Thor: Ragnarok' wig came at an astronomical cost Facebook deletes 4 pages belonging to Alex Jones and InfoWars Mum hilariously confuses Beyoncé and Rihanna in awkward text exchange