Paris Crowds Astonished by Man on Hoverboard

The Bastille prison was stormed via land in 1789 during the French Revolution. Sunday's commemoration of it involved the air in the most attention-grabbing of ways. French inventor Franky Zapata soared over astonished crowds in Paris on his turbine engine-powered Flyboard Air prior to the start of the military parade. The AFP reports he carried a rifle as he did so, "in a sign of the possible military uses of his device."

Indeed, CNET reports the French military last year gave Zapata a €1.3 million grant ($1.46 million in today's dollars) related to the device. Gizmodo adds that Zapata in 2017 said he was partnering with the US military as well; Gizmodo's piece looks at shortcomings of hoverboards in terms of military use (among them, cost and safety issues) and how the Flyboard intersects with those concerns. The device has a current maximum run-time of 10 minutes, during which it can fly as fast as 118mph. In 10 days, Zapata plans to attempt a crossing of the English Channel, a feat which will require him to refuel during flight. (More Bastille Day stories.)