The 32-year-old Muhammad Fayyaz said he had dreamed of joining the air force as a child, but his father died while he was in still in school, forcing him to drop out at the eighth grade and do odd jobs to feed his mother and his five younger siblings. As an adult, his passion for flying remained undiminished, so he took a wild gamble on a new dream and put everything he had into creating his own craft. By day he worked as a popcorn seller, by night as a security guard, saving every rupee he could.

The first thing he had to acquire was information - beginning with watching episodes of the National Geographic Channel's Air Crash Investigation for insight into thrust, air pressure, torque, propulsion. He sold a piece of family land, and took out a 50,000 rupee ($350) loan from a micro-finance NGO, which he is still paying off.

Representatives from the Pakistan Air Force have made two visits to view the plane and the commander of a nearby base issued him a certificate which praises his "passion and dexterity" in building what it described as a "mini basic airplane". He obtains a flying license or permit, he is free to fly