Jet+Pack

For the last few years, Italian engineers have been working on a humanoid robot for emergency response applications. The iRonCub3 has jets on its back and fire-breathers on its arms, and has now achieved stable take-off and hover for the first time.

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Imagine that you're injured on a remote mountain path but have managed to contact emergency rescue. The first to arrive on the scene could be a small humanoid robot wearing a jetpack if Italian research bears fruit.

In a video posted to TikTok, Gravity Industries founder Richard Browning has shown off what appears to be live-fire aerial testing of a shoulder-mounted, head-tracking weapons system for the Iron Man-style jet suit he's been flying since 2017.

Having already carried out flights of its Jet Suit in separate rescue and military demonstrations, UK company Gravity Industries has combined the two as part of a NATO Mountain Warfare Rescue Exercise.