Issue #10, 2009

THE MARTIN JETPACK & DYNAMIC COMPOSITES LTD — FLYING HIGH WITH HELP FROM VACMOBILE

Dynamic Composites is a Christchurch (New Zealand) based composites design and specialist manufacturing company with a focus on creating innovative solutions. Established in 1997, they have successfully married passion, innovation and engineering excellence to break world records and de- velop leading technology, products and equipment. The companies main ambition has been a commitment to produce unique solutions that demonstrate outright performance, im- provement and inventiveness, whilst main- taining a functional and technical focus. The skills, expertise and determination of the company have been in demand over a broad range of areas such as aerospace projects, undertaking “special projects” for America’s Cup syndicates and working with elite sportspeople and the New Zealand Academy of Sport. Dynamic Composites were approached in 2004 by the Martin Aircraft Company to help fulfil the dream of personal flight. Earlier Jetpack prototypes, although func- tional, were too heavy requiring the develop- ment of the complex composite components of the new ground breaking Martin Jetpack. The Martin Jetpack, developed over 27 years, is set to become the world’s first commercially viable, ultralight personal jet- pack. Development of jetpack design, dating back to the1950’s, has been continually hampered by the problem of sustained flying time. Early Jetpacks could only stay in the air for less than 30 seconds. The Martin Jetpack is being developed to fly for 100 times longer. It sounds like science fiction – but this unique machine is very real. One of the critical factors in developing the Martin Jetpack was weight saving. Using the latest composite technologies, Dynamic Composites has created a carbon fibre com- posite airframe that weighs less than 30% of the machines’ total dry weight – yet is rigid and strong enough to meet the demands of flight. Dynamic Composites also designed carbon fibre components for the unique Martin V4 engine including high temperature carbon fibre engine head sailboat covers and air boxes. Vacmobiles.com recently supplied a 20/2 infusion machine to Dynamic Composites. This was used to produce some of the clear carbon finished parts of the third P11 Martin Jetpack, including the tailcones and rear shrouds as pictured below. For more information: Contact Milton Bloomfield at Dynamic Composites Ltd +64 03 384 0206 www.dynamic-composites.co.nz