New South Wales: Up, up and away

A test flight at Takapuna Beach. Photo / NZME.

Andrew Louis gets a taste of life as a flying superhero.

It's a relaxing day on a beautiful tree-lined lake in West Sydney, Australia. Suddenly, some teenagers point at the sky. Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No. With the roar of awesomeness, a superhero descends from the heavens. Well, not quite: it's just me in a water-propelled jet pack.

The jet pack is actually a pair of nozzles attached to a heavy frame which is then strapped to you. Thrust is provided by lake water pumped through a 20m hose from a jetski operated by Scottie, my instructor.

Scottie, says the key to stable, sustained flight is small movements. But on my first attempt to launch in water, I fail to lift the jets up enough and dive, head first, into the cold lake.

I manage 10 minutes of actual flying time, hovering and moving forward fairly well. Turning left or right, on the other hand, I am Superman.

There is a steep learning curve to flying the jet pack but Scottie assures me most people find it a lot easier by the second time. No time for round two, though, I'm looking for another way to defy gravity.

Only minutes from Jet Pack Lake is iFly Indoor Skydiving. It's 20m-tall vertical wind tunnel reminds me of Willy Wonka's Fizzy Lifting Drinks. Big fans at the top blow air down the sides of the building. The air compresses at the bottom before blowing up the tunnel and recirculating back through the fans. Air speed is controlled by an operator outside.

Landlubber Andrew Louis prepares to go airborne in Sydney.

Waiting for my turn, I watch two guys fly up, down, round and round, upside down. Their antics remind me to check my Lotto ticket when I get home.

As with the jet pack, my instructor, Mike, advises small movements to control flight. Just when I get the hang of hovering two metres above the ground, he decides to spice things up and flies us 20m to the top and down while spinning around. Twice.

Word of warning: if you have ever suffered a shoulder dislocation there is a risk of it dislocating again in the tunnel and iFly advises against flying. But I had no problems with mine.

Now I know what Iron Man and Superman feel like when they fly off into the heavens after saving the day.

The writer travelled courtesy of Destination New South Wales, Atura Blacktown and Hyundai Genesis. Go to sydney.com or visitnsw.com.