Flying Like A Bird: Jarno Smeets, Dutchman, Takes Flight With Human Birdwings (VIDEO)

CORRECTION: On March 20, 2012 we reported the story below. It was subsequently revealed that this story is a hoax. Fox News reports filmmaker and animator Floris Kaayk admitted on Dutch national television the project was "a media art project" and never expected the fictitious video to gain so much attention. For more details, watch the YouTube video.

Flying is no longer reserved for birds or planes. Just ask Jarno Smeets, the man who has mastered human flight with his self-designed birdwings.

As shown in this incredible YouTube video, Smeets takes a running start and then lifts off the ground by flapping his massive brightly colored wings and manages to stay airborne for about 30 seconds.

In this most recent attempt, he was able to fly up to 100 meters, IT World reports.

A mechanical engineer, Smeets' success is the fruit of eight months of research and design for his Human Birdwings Project.

Gizmodo explains the flight isn't achieved with his own arm strength alone. Instead, the flapping motion is magnified by motors controlled by a system Smeets developed using Nintendo Wii controllers and an Android smartphone.

Smeets wrote on his blog that his inspiration for the contraption dates back to his childhood when he found sketches of his grandfather's flying bicycle in the family attic.

Interested in more examples of flying humans? Check out this YouTube clip of former pilot scaling the Grand Canyon with jet powered wings.