Jetpack

"Jetpacks allow for maneuverability and can act as shock-dampeners when out pioneering in uncharted territories. Be sure to keep it stocked with fuel at all times, especially in mid-air!"

- Caterina Parks's assistant Steve

The Jetpack is equipment pioneers can use to gain elevation and avoid fall damage.

Jetpack Hog
When a Hog bearing a Jetpack explodes or is killed, it drops a Jetpack usable by pioneers.

Equipment
The Jetpack is a personal flight device used to increase altitude and potentially avoid fall damage. While the pioneer is in the air, pressing the Jump key will activate it, consuming fuel to accelerate up to a maximum speed of ~3.6 m/s upwards.

It also passively increases the pioneer's air maneuverability; horizontal acceleration and turning in the air is greatly improved, without needing to use fuel.

The Jetpack generally allows the pioneer to fly up to 22 meters vertically when the jump key is held down, and 136 meters horizontally. These distances can be surpassed (and even doubled) by repeatedly tapping the jump key.

As the Jetpack doesn't modify the pioneer's horizontal momentum at all, a high-speed launch can allow the pioneer to safely cover huge distances. Mk.5 Conveyor Belts, Jump Pads and especially Hypertube cannons can serve as excellent permanent infrastructure to travel long distances through the air.

Fall damage is based on downwards velocity, so negating fall damage is as straightforward as pressing the Jump key to slow one's descent while nearing the ground. Practice with smaller cliffs is recommended.

Fuel
The Jetpack requires Packaged Fuel in the pioneer's inventory to operate. It will not (currently) work with Packaged Turbofuel or Packaged Liquid Biofuel. Three Packaged Fuels will be consumed for each full recharge.

The fuel bar is displayed at the lower left of the game window and it only lasts for six seconds. It quickly depletes during the flight. The jetpack automatically refuels when the pioneer is standing on a solid surface (not in the air, swimming, or climbing a Ladder), consuming Packaged Fuel from the inventory.

Current issues

 * During autosave, the Jetpack will continue adding upward velocity during the short freeze that sometimes occurs, causing a sudden upward boost when the game unfreezes that can greatly exceed the jetpack's normal abilities for increasing altitude.
 * Holding Space and then opening the game menu will cause the Jetpack to continue to run, even after letting go of Space. Closing the menu and tapping Space will stop the Jetpack and return it to normal functionality.
 * The Jetpack will refill even when no fuel is in the inventory a short while after taking it off.

Tips

 * For routinely crossing large distances it is best combined with a Hyper Tube cannon.
 * The Tilted Jump Pad also boosts the flight range of the Jetpack.
 * When the Jetpack is first crafted, it will be filled with a full charge.
 * In general, repeatedly tapping the jump key is more effective than holding it, both for fuel conservation and for distance.

History

 * Patch 0.4.0.11: No longer requires Computers for its unlock (replaced by Packaged Fuel), making it a bit easier to unlock in early Tier 6
 * Unknown Update 4 patch: Changed recipe from 25 Cables to 5 Motors
 * Patch 0.3: Now consumes Packaged Fuel instead of Fuel
 * Patch 0.1.5: Changed crafting cost from 3 Circuit Board and  25 Plastic to 15 Circuit Board and 50 Plastic