Fancy being catapulted about 12 storeys into the air, then free falling at breathtaking pace and bobbing up and down behind the bars of a metal ball?

It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but seekers of an adrenaline rush, who have no fear of heights, are sure to get a kick out of what is appropriately called a Slingshot and has come to a town near you.

Set up in St George's Road in Paceville, the human Slingshot has been attracting revellers over the past couple of weeks, providing alternative entertainment in the nightlife zone. If the nightclub isn't doing it for you, pop out for a flight into the starry sky - just don't expect enough time to get romantic.

The Slingshot, which operates from 8 p.m. to around 4 a.m., may take two people at a time, strapped tight into airplane-like seats in a round cage. But any conversation is probably limited to a scream, and if hands are held, it's probably to clutch onto dear life.

An offshoot of Bungee jumping - or the reverse, in that you shoot up into the sky before falling down - the Slingshot is not exactly a novelty, having been around for about 12 years and popular in Ibiza and the UK, according to the Malta operators, Hugo Chetcuti and partners.

But it's the first summer it has landed in Malta and is drawing in the crowds, who seem to be coming back for more.

The organisers said it may appeal to the younger at heart but even 55-year-olds are attempting it.

"Although it may look scary, the Slingshot is totally safe. No accidents have ever happened, and if you see how the mechanism works, there are loads of safety measures. If one spring were to falter, another would kick in, then another and another...

"You wouldn't be able to insure these things if they were not safe," the operators said.