Luo Jinshan gives his gyroplane a test run but stays on the road. Photo: Yang Hui/GT

Luo Jinshan, a 28-year-old migrant worker from Sichuan Province, was set to take off in his homemade gyroplane on Wednesday in Hongmiao village, Fengxian district, but was stopped by local police who told him this would be against the law.

He began building the machine last August, working off the blueprints of a Russian gyroplane he had found on the Internet.

"It's my childhood dream. When I was a teenager I often saw airplanes fly over my home but there was no airport in my hometown. So I decided to build a plane myself," he told the Global Times.

The gyroplane he made has a 7.2-meter rotor weighing 15 kilograms, a Yamaha engine with a fuel tank and a stainless steel frame. It cost him around 40,000 yuan ($6,530), almost emptying his savings.

He named the aircraft "Tongjiang Huoju" after the county and town in Sichuan Province where he was born.

Out on the road Luo's friend drives behind the gyroplane for safety. Photo: Yang Hui/GT

It does fly. Luo said he had tested the plane on February 14 in Luchaogang, a port in southeastern Shanghai. He said his plane flew about 100 meters but only a meter or so from the ground and he had to stop because of engine problems.

Two friends had helped him to take the plane from his home in Fengxian to Luchaogang early in the morning.

He tried to test it again in Fengxian on February 19, but was spotted by local police on CCTV. Officers arrived at the test flight site and persuaded him to stop.

According to regulations, a lightweight aircraft can only be flown unlicensed if it weighs under 116 kilograms. Luo's plane is 50 kilograms over the limit.

Wednesday's intended test flight was also stopped by the police although they let him test the rotor on the road.

Luo looks over notes in his makeshift gyroplane workshop. Photo: Yang Hui/GT

Left his work

A former maintenance technician at a Shanghai factory, Luo left a 4,800-yuan-a- month job a few days ago to concentrate on flying his plane.

"I'm pretty upset that I'm not allowed to test my plane because of regulations. But I do have a bigger dream - I want to build a big helicopter for the emergency medical services in my hometown and help my fellow townsmen," he said. "I know this might sound far-fetched, but I hope one day this will come true."

A problem gets fixed on the spot. Photo: Yang Hui/GT

Asked if he was going to modify his aircraft to meet the regulations, he said he didn't have any money left. "I will go back to my former factory for work for now."

The son of a blacksmith, Luo learned some basic mechanical skills from his father. He left school when he was in junior middle school, because of poverty, and worked as a migrant worker in other parts of China before arriving in Shanghai in May 2005.