The Rocketbelt Caper: A True Tale of Invention, Obsession and Murder by Paul Brown
ISBN 9780956227003, Superelastic, RRP £7.99

‘We finished the rocketbelt, and from then on there was murder, kidnapping, and all kinds of other stuff.’

When three friends set out on a quest to build a real-life Buck Rogers-style flying machine, their obsession with the Rocketbelt 2000, or ‘Pretty Bird’, shattered their friendship and set in motion an astonishing chain of events involving theft, deception, a bizarre kidnapping, a ten million dollar lawsuit and a horrifically brutal murder. This book also reveals the secret history of the flying jetpack, involving Nazi scientists, James Bond, and the US Army. From sci-fi to reality, this is the true story of the amazing rocketbelt.

Available in Paperback and on Kindle.

Also from Amazon.com and other bookshops.

‘A delight to read. Genuinely stranger than fiction. Recommended.’ – Popular Science UK
‘A can’t-put-it-down murder mystery that shows how obsession and betrayal can lead people to commit dastardly deeds.’ – General Aviation News
‘Begins with a brief history of rocketbelts that’s probably the best ever in print.’ – Beam Jockey
‘The story has all the markings of a Hollywood blockbuster, and is a bizarrely unforgettable read.’ – The Crack
‘Reads like good movie material.’ – BBC Focus
‘There’s probably a Tarantino movie in this somewhere.’ – Fortean Times
‘This book is a must have.’ – Airwalker Society of Rocketbelt Enthusiasts

Read an Extract:

The book opens with a test flight of the Rocketbelt 2000 that ends in disaster. Read the first chapter online courtesy of Air & Space magazine.

Watch a Video:

Watch this ABC News report about the rocketbelt murder – it’s in two parts:

You can find more Rocketbelt Caper news and videos here.

The Rocketbelt Caper was selected as one of ShortList magazine’s 25 greatest summer reads: