Ismail Sheikh from Maharashtra builds helicopter, dies as blades slash his throat
A 24-year-old school dropout, who wished to build a helicopter himself, died after one of the rotor blades of the chopper he was testing, broke and slashed his throat at Fulsawangi village in Mahagaon tehsil of the district on Tuesday night.
The deceased Sheikh Ismail Sheikh Ibrahim had stopped going to school while in standard 8 and started working in elder brother Mussavir’s gas welding workshop and mastered the art of making almirahs, coolers and other household articles with steel and aluminium sheets.
It was Ismail’s passion to do something different to bring international fame for his village Fulsawangi.
“Inspired by the character of Rancho in the film ‘3 Idiots’, Ismail wanted to do something unique and hence decided to build a helicopter in the village. After gathering information about the design and assembly by watching YouTube videos, he started working on his dream project. It took nearly two years for Ismail to collect all the parts needed. He also readied the prototype of a single-seater helicopter by welding steel pipes and fitted a Maruti 800 engine to power it,” said his friend Sachin Ubale.
