French 'Green Goblin' will try to fly from France to England again on Sunday

Franky Zapata, the French inventor who looked a whole lot like Spider-Man archnemesis Green Goblin as he flew a hoverboard through Paris during June's Bastille Day celebrations, took an unsuccessful first shot at flying across the English Channel last Thursday, and he'll try again this Sunday.

In his previous attempt, he took off near Calais, France, on his invention -- the turbine engine-powered Flyboard Air -- and flew across the channel toward St. Margaret's Bay in Dover, England. He planned to make the 22-mile journey in around 20 minutes, with a quick stop on a boat to refill his power pack with kerosene, the Associated Press noted.

Unfortunately, he fell into the water when he tried to land on a boat for refueling. His wife, Christelle, told the AP that the waves moved the landing platform too much. Zapata wasn't injured in the fall, and French divers rescued him quickly. 

On Tuesday, Zapata's team told AFP they'll try to avoid repeating the mistake on Sunday by using a bigger boat stationed in French waters for refueling. France's authorities wouldn't allow that for last Thursday's attempt.

Last week's attempt was timed to mark the 110th anniversary of the first aerial crossing of the channel. Louis Bleriot's 1909 trip took 37 minutes.

Unsurprisingly, the internet continued its comparisons to the Marvel Comics villain. 

Zapata's company website notes that the Flyboard Air isn't available for recreational use and would require 100 hours of training on its water variant if it were. So you can't become Green Goblin anytime soon. It'll probably take at least two sequels.

First published July 25 at 2:51 a.m. PT.
Updated July 31 at 4:55 a.m. PT: Adds that Zapata will try again on Sunday.