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'Rocket Man' in jet-powered suit flies off a British aircraft carrier in Annapolis

Richard Browning, an ex-Royal Marines Reservist, jumped off the HMS Queen Elizabeth in a jet-powered suit during the ship's US visit Monday.
Credit: Gravity Industries

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — It's not every day you see a ship as large as Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth docked in the United States, let alone Annapolis-- after all, it's the British Royal Navy's biggest ship. But it's also not every day you see someone fly with a jetpack.

Visitors gathered around Annapolis waters on Tuesday got to see both. 

A video of former Royal Marines Reservist Richard Browning launching off the ship in a jet-powered suit was shared on social media accounts of Gravity Industries, a British innovation company focused on aeronautics that was founded by Browning. Filming the entire excursion, Browning took the jet-pack device -- which he created -- for a test demonstration around the water. 

Credit: Gravity Industries

Browning has reportedly been working with the Royal Navy on his jet-pack invention. According to CNBC, Browning's similar jet-powered flying jet-suits run about $440,000. 

The ship was docked in Annapolis waters for the Atlantic Future Forum, a conference between both the Naval Academy and the Royal Navy focused on security innovation and defense practices. HMS Queen Elizabeth is a feat of its own, the first aircraft in the world to have two command centers. It can also carry up to 40 aircraft.

The $4.5 billion ship is set to deploy in 2021.

WATCH: Richard Browning take off with his jet-pack device on Tuesday.

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