Can Moon Knight Fly? No, but He Can Glide, Here’s How

Moon Knight was never among the most powerful characters in Marvel Comics. Still, his personalities and the source of his powers were intriguing enough that he was written about here on Comic Basics several times already. We know that Moon Knight was born a regular human but got his powers after Egyptian Moon God Khonshu resurrected him, and we know that he has enhanced everything depending on the moon phase, but can Moon Knight fly? We saw him taking flight several times in the comics and MCU, and yet Khonshu never gifted him with flying powers. So how can Moon Knight fly?

Moon Knight doesn’t fly, he glides. He utilizes his cape to glide across the sky. The material needs to be both sturdy and pliable at the same time to allow for optimal speed and aerodynamics. In the MCU, Spector also glides by utilizing his cape, although he was propelled in the sky by Khonshu himself, and it is assumed that his cloak in the MCU has supernatural properties which makes gliding easier.

Now that we’ve covered that Moon Knight’s suit is the key to his “flying,” it’s time to analyze how. We know that Moon Knight often utilizes tech in his pursuits, and it’s pretty impressive. If you want to know more about it, keep reading with us!

Khonshu granted Moon Knight many powers, but flight wasn’t one of them

Marc Spector became Moon Knight after he was killed by his former colleague Raul Bushman and left for dead at the feet of Khonshu’s statue in the tomb they were supposed to raid. Khonshu saw the opportunity to resurrect Spector and use him as his champion; thus, Moon Knight was born.

Don’t get me wrong, Moon Knight is superhuman and created through supernatural means, but his powers aren’t exactly anything groundbreaking and exotic. He has enhanced speed, strength, durability, senses, and reflexes, and also Khonshu completely transformed Spector’s mindscape. But this is pretty much it, Spector’s powers are stronger while the moon is full, and if you catch him at the wrong time, he might be as weak as a slightly enhanced human.

This is where Moon Knight’s tech comes into play, as he used it often and used it well to further improve his chances while fighting, and since Khonshu never gave him the power of flight, Spector had to reach toward his gear once again.

Moon Knight glides by using his gear

Even though Moon Knight is a master martial artist and acrobatically gifted with superb reflexes, fans were still wondering how Moon Knight can leap from rooftop to rooftop so quickly without seemingly taking no fall damage at all.

The answer lies in his suit, his cloak, to be more specific. Moon Knight uses a special custom-made cape that allows him to glide and descend from great heights without killing himself or taking massive amounts of damage.

The rest of Moon Knight’s suit might be made out of Kevlar, but his cape is different. It’s made from a flexible material that allows for better airflow. His special cloak was created by Jean-Paul DuChamp, and so far, almost all incarnations of the character used it.

Besides his cloak, Moon Knight has access to a custom-made helicopter, ‘Moon-copter,’ capable of reaching up to 220 mph and a ceiling of 10,000 feet with a range of 1000 miles.

His helicopter is not the most convenient to use in everyday scenarios, and this is why he often relies on ‘Angel Wing.’ Angel Wing is also a custom-made flying vehicle that seats two people.

Although much less powerful than the Moon-copter, it gets the job done as it has remote access and various kinds of gadgetry, and also, due to its size, it is much more accessible than the helicopter.

How does Moon Knight fly in the MCU?

MCU brought Moon Knight to our screens, and it brought Moon Knight to the forefront for casual fans that weren’t exactly familiar with the character’s history. We saw Moon Knight flying in several scenes during the Battle of Cairo, and while it looked pretty realistic, it still wasn’t a true flight.

Like in the comics, Moon Knight relies on his cloak to fly. His Moon Knight’s suit was given to him by Khnoshu, and the suit changes depending on which personality is currently dominant. We’re going to assume that the suit functions just like the one in the comics, but it’s probably enchanted more since it greatly amplified what Moon Knight could do and allowed him access to several different powers and summons.

How fast can Moon Knight Glide?

The rate at which Moon Knight glides depends on the weather conditions, of course, since he can’t exactly control his flight like other superheroes that were born with the power. Moon Knight’s gliding depends too much on outside factors, so it’s hard to even make an estimate on how fast he can move. In the MCU, we’ve seen Moon Knight propelled into the air by Khnoshu himself, so I guess Moon Knight’s flight speed would depend on Khnoshu.

Why can’t Moon Knight truly fly?

Flying is still a relatively rare power in the comics compared to enhanced strength, stamina, durability, and longevity, so it doesn’t surprise us that only a selected few can fly unassisted. It’s usually power reserved for some of the most powerful superheroes. Moon Knight can’t fly simply because Khnoshu has never gifted him with the power, and there’s really no need for him to have that power. Moon Knight’s gliding is too iconic and too memorable to be replaced with something as generic as “wingless” flight.

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