In the autumn of 2020, there were multiple reports of a mysterious jetpacker flying over Los Angeles International Airport. Was it Iron Man? The Rocketeer? One of Tom Delonge's government-sanctioned UFO projects?
As Lucas Ropek of Gizmodo reports—drawing on the CIA's recently-released Black Vault files—it was probably just a drone carrying a mannequin like this.
According to the papers, a pilot involved in the August incident told the FBI that the "jetpack man" looked identical to a dummy-carrying drone he'd seen on Youtube.
"Mike Bumberger, our LEAP [Law Enforcement Assistance Program] Agent shared that the FBI interviewed the American Airlines pilot that made the jetpack sighting," writes John Blanco, the Aviation Safety Manager at the Los Angeles Flight Standards District Office, in an email to FAA officials. "The pilot said what he saw was exactly like the drone in the YouTube video below."
That YouTube video Blanco is referring to was shot near an airfield in Germany and shows a camo-clad mannequin borne aloft by a powerful Duocopter drone.
The Drive adds:
The newly released jet pack-related documents also include discussions between FAA officials regarding a video posted on Facebook on Sept. 8, 2020, of another possible sighting of a "jet pack guy." That clip, seen below, purportedly shows the object in question, which does appear to be the general size and shape of a person, flying near the cities of Cudahy and South Gate, to the southeast of downtown Los Angeles.
Disappointing, but also not particularly surprising.
Mysterious 'Jetpack Guy' Could Actually Be This Weird Mannequin Drone [Lucas Ropek / Gizmodo]
Airliner Pilot Says Jet Pack Guy Over Los Angeles Looked Just Like This Crazy Drone [Joseph Trevithick / The Drive]
Image via YouTube
