A year ago, TIME published a list of innovations that were predicted to change our lives, but haven't quite had the impact some imagined.
Among the items from "future that wasn't": a jet-propelled backpack that appeared in a 1969 issue of Popular Science. There's a fabulous image of a person in retro-futuristic garb, seemingly flying through mist over a mountain range.
Enjoy.
How does he keep his butt from catching on fire?
I don't know which is worse the burned butt or the ugly hat.
They did make jetpacks that worked, short range hydrogen-peroxide rockets. Wouldn't get you over a mountain but one was featured in an old james bond movie. I seem to remember there was a bunch of drama over the invention .. murder , prototypes stolen , fun stuff.