On trial run of helicopter he built, man known as ‘Yavatmal’s Rancho’ dies in rotor blade mishap

A 28-year old man, who dreamed of making his own helicopter and launching a manufacturing company one day, died from the impact of one of the rotor blades of the copter during a trial run on Tuesday night at Fulsawangi village in Yavatmal district of Maharashtra.

His friends said Sheikh Ismail was preparing to launch his ‘Munna Helicopter’ on Independence Day. He wanted the helicopter to be a low-cost alternative for personal use or for the government, to be deployed for rescue operations during floods and other calamities.

Ismail had studied only up to Class 7 but was famous as Yavatmal’s ‘Rancho’ for his mechanical experiments.