A Kerala man is making waves online (and in the air) for his unique style of holidaying – in an aircraft he built himself. Ashok Aliseril Thamarakshan, an engineer who hails from Alappuzha and is now based in the United Kingdom – not only built his own plane, but also tours with his family.
Ashok built the four seater ‘Sling TSI’ model in about 18 months; he calls the plane, which is named for his daughter, ‘G-Diya’. The son of former MLA AV Thamarakshan, Ashok relocated to the UK in 2006 to study. He now works for the Ford Motor Company, The Times of India said.
“Initially I used to rent small two-seater aircraft for trips after acquiring my pilot licence in 2018. But since my family comprises my wife and two daughters, I required a four-seater aircraft. But they are rare and even if I could get one… they were very old. This made me explore options and learn about home-built aircraft.”
