We’ve waited too long for something exciting like this to happen. I mean they figured out how to make cars super fast a long time ago; I do admire how awesome the most recent super cars look, and am certainly impressed by their specs. But come on, I lost excitement when it became about spending an extra $100,000 to go from, 0-100km/h in 3.2 seconds instead of 3.5. We need something new, something different and innovative to look up to! And New Zealand has done it!

The government has granted Martin Aircraft, a Christchurch-based company, the green light to perform manned test flights on their P12 jetpacks. This means you could buy your own personal jetpack in just under a year!

The P12 uses premium gasoline as fuel to power an engine connected to two ducted fans to achieve lift, and it can fly for about 30 minutes on a full fuel tank. Its design claims a maximum speed of 100km/h, but it is rumoured recent tests have achieved up to 112km/h.

The jetpack’s initial production model is being designed for military and “first-responder” emergency crews, and should be good to go sometime in 2014. A more basic model for you and I should be on the market by 2015, but much like those fancy cars, it is estimated to retail at around NZ$150,000.

The price tag is certainly a bummer, but there is no need to get upset. Just like any new piece of technology, the price is estimated to go down over time, making it more accessible.

The realisation of having a jetpack as an everyday method of transportation is amazing. We are 2 years away from the piece of technology that has always been critically linked with the idea of what the future is going to look like.

How do you feel about the idea that you might have to bail your grandchildren out of jail one day for jetpack drag racing?