We already have jetpacks. That one that was in the James Bond movie, I think that was the real thing. They did an NCIS episode on it. They exist. It's just no one wants you to have one, for the same reason that you want to be the only one who has one.
And, that thing about going to Mars and all that, I really don't see how tricking people into space travel is going to give us aliens. I think tricking us into believing in aliens has given us space travel.