On 4 August, the forty-year-old from Marseille crossed the English Channel on his jet-powered Flyboard Air, from Sangatte to St Margaret's Bay. Maybe, like Louis Blériot before him, he's opening a new chapter in aviation history.
Overcoming constraints, obstacles, persisting with his project. Franky Zapata undoubtedly possesses the rare qualities of stubborn determination and perseverance plus a good dose of muscle strength. The man who flew over the Place de la Concorde during the Bastille Day parade and opened Marseille's fireworks display the same evening evidently has no shortage of the latter. This former jet ski champion, an accomplished sportsman with a finely-honed competitive edge, insists it’s all about "elbow toning". He first invented the Flyboard with underfoot water propulsion that sold well, turning a nice profit and allowing him to continue. He worked tirelessly to perfect his jet-powered Flyboard, first unveiled in 2016, inspired by hero Marty McFly’s hoverboard in Back to the Future. He regularly came up against French administration flight bans, constraints, refusals and even the threat of a prison sentence. So much so that at one time he was ready to leave his native Provence to continue his experiments. Nonetheless persisting, he used social networks to explain what he was doing. He set up his company Zapata Racing and with his iron muscles and steely determination remained on course between setbacks and awe-inspiring demonstrations. He wants his place in the history of flying men, and the competition is in full swing; he is not the only one in the running. The stakes are high with a flying car and commercial-military applications for his turbine and advanced technologies emerging behind the sporting feat. The army has just signed a cheque for a little over €1 million to help him develop this turbine with 3D printing. Incidentally, with a commitment to 100% renewable products and rapeseed oil, he is not overlooking the eco-responsibility principle. Rolls-Royce may announce a flying taxi that could be ready by the middle of next year, but Zapata Racing will shortly be embarking on a flying car made in Le Rove.
Par Dominique Juan
Photographie Christophe Billet
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