SALISBURY Cathedral Close looked like the set of a science fiction film this afternoon, as a man took flight in a jet suit in front of stunned crowds.

Richard Browning, who has been described as Salisbury's own Iron Man for his robotic flying suit, demonstrated the Gravity Jet Suit against the backdrop of the cathedral. 

He told the Journal: "It is hard to truly describe what it [flying] is like."

The event was attended by more than 250 students from across Salisbury as part of a special programme promoting science, tehnology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

Richard, who is the founder and chief test pilot of Gravity Industries, hopes the suits (costing around half a million pounds each) will later be turned into a racing series, and has recently performed demonstrations in Shanghai and Boston.

Director of the GREAT Britain Campaign, Conrad Bird, who supported the event, said the suit is "an example of world-leading innovation and cutting-edge technology cultivated right here in Salisbury".