US: Jetpack sighted again above Los Angeles, this time at 6,000 feet

For the second time in six weeks, crew members on a commercial airliner flying near LAX on Wednesday found that they were sharing the skies with a person soaring solo over Southern California in a jetpack. The latest encounter was reported to have occurred at an altitude of 6,000 feet — nearly six times the height of the Wilshire Grand Tower, the tallest building not only in Los Angeles but west of the Mississippi. A China Airlines crew spotted the person about 1:45 p.m. Wednesday roughly seven miles northwest of the airport, the FAA said. The agency is investigating the report. A spokeswoman for the FBI said, “We are aware of the report and are in contact with the FAA,” but declined to comment further. Federal officials said last month that they were investigating the earlier jetpack sighting by two commercial pilots. The sightings at such high altitudes are surprising, given that most jetpacks are not equipped to fly for more than a few minutes, or to go very high. Flying in busy airspace like that around a major city’s airport also presents the risk of a collision with a jetliner or of being drawn into a plane’s engine.<br/>