Flying has never been a cheap hobby. Ask any pilot. Beside the cost of the aircraft, there is fuel, parts and servicing, storage, licensing and insurance. So if you dream of flying but can't afford it, you might be interested in learning to fly an "ultralight" aircraft.

Harry Vlaar of Houston has always wanted to fly, so maybe it was fate that he moved into a house right beside a helicopter business. One of the pilots took Harry up for a ride and since that day in 1983, Harry has logged 1200 hours of flying ultralight aircraft.

Harry's first flying adventure began with the purchase of a kit to build a single-seat gyrocopter. A cross between a helicopter and an airplane, the 100 kg craft had an overhead rotor and a single tail rotor, which enabled him to rise up into the air at 300 metres per minute and travel forward up to 150 kph. That's a lot of speed with no windshield or cockpit.
The gyrocopter, which according to Harry's wife Cathy looks like a "...flying lawn chair", took two months to assemble. Then Harry read a book on how to fly it.