“I woke up and prayed to say ‘I am going fly in a real helicopter’....I called my mother to tell her that I am going to fly. "

Not so long ago‚ flying was nothing but a dream for Hendrick Chebanga‚ let alone sitting in the cockpit with the instrument panel right in front of him.

But on Wednesday‚ the man‚ who built a replica police helicopter in his backyard‚ could not wait to tell everyone he knows‚ including his mother in Zimbabwe‚ that his dream has been fulfilled and probably there are more flights to come.

Before leaving his shack in Dilopye village‚ near Hammanskraal‚ in Pretoria to go to the Grand Central Airport where he was due to take off‚ he said a short prayer thanking God for the opportunity to fly in a real helicopter.

“I woke up and prayed to say ‘I am going fly in a real helicopter’....I called my mother to tell her that I am going to fly. She was very happy for me and proud that her son was going to be in a helicopter‚” he said.

Chebanga said just getting inside the helicopter was priceless for him‚ saying the best moments of the 45-minute flight were the take-off‚ the turns‚ the view from the sky and the roaring sound of the engine of the sleek black Airbus H120 five-seater turbine helicopter as it soared over Sandton CBD.

“I was on the front seat; I was feeling like I am a pilot…seeing everything from above‚ I was very impressed‚ like a co-pilot. I enjoyed it very much. Cars were like small things‚ the view on top is very nice‚ it was like I am on the other side of the world‚” the 30-year-old son of a carpenter beamed after touching down.

He said the experience fuelled his ambition of building a real helicopter‚ saying all his efforts‚ working 12 hours a day for eight months building his replica‚ paid off.

Johannesburg businessman Alan Robertson‚ who made it all possible‚ said Chebanga was an inspiration in aviation and that he was a natural up in the sky.

Robertson‚ who owns and piloted the aircraft‚ said he was privileged to be the first person to fly with Chebanga.

“To see what he was able to craft out of scrap material and wrought iron to build an aircraft‚ without even having sight of measurements of an aircraft‚ was pretty spectacular so it was a real privilege to come meet with Hendrick. What a privilege to be the first person to fly with him‚” he said.

Robertson said instead of being nervous‚ Chebanga was a natural in the sky.

Chebanga pulled out his phone and started taking a video of himself.

“When you take someone on their first flight it is quite intimidating‚ you are in an aircraft and the next thing you are floating but lucky for me Hendrick was very familiar with the systems and he understands‚ he build a helicopter so he understands the mechanics‚” Robertson said.