Microsoft's biggest Xbox 360 games release of the year, Halo: Reach on the Xbox 360, hits shops from Midnight tonight (official launch date, Tuesday 14 September) so the team strapped a jet pack to the back of a Spartan and sent him into the sky - naturally.

Dressed in full Noble Team Spartan garb, the International renowned Rocketman (who's not Elton John, Pocket-lint has been reliably informed) had a 30 second flight around Trafalgar Square, before coming back down to Earth.

Apparently, the watching public were handed earplugs, as the pack generates a phenomenal 140db of sound.

Now, if you're wondering why Team Xbox went to all this trouble, Halo: Reach actually features jet packs: 

“Halo: Reach is the biggest and best Halo game yet with new features that will keep gamers entertained for years to come," says Stephen McGill, Director of Xbox and Entertainment, UK & Ireland. "One of the coolest new features are the Jetpacks that Noble Team Spartans are now equipped with. We couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate the biggest entertainment launch of 2010 than with our very own Jetpack Spartan in one of London’s most iconic landmarks".

So there you have it.

Catch up with Pocket-lint's full review of Halo: Reach soon.