DaVinci said it was possible, as have many others since. Now, maybe it’s happening. English movie stuntman Gary Connery recently became the first man to jump out of a helicopter wearing nothing but a reinforced spaceman suit and pair of bat-like wings. It took him nearly a minute to glide the thousand feet safely to earth.

According to news reports, improved versions of his equipment, including a light propulsion engine backpack, are already on the drawing board. Can you imagine the whole lot of shaking going on right now in airline boardrooms?

Once people start flying around independently, will that result in reduced ticket prices to lure them back into cramped five-across seats? What about the airport security fondlers? Will they have to find other outlets for their fun? And what does it mean for air traffic controllers? Will they have to stay awake long enough to act as traffic cops as hordes of people sail by in all directions? Oh, the humanity!