Hope sky high for homemade Malawian helicopter

It has never taken off, and could well be a death trap, but a homemade helicopter built in Malawi is drawing crowds captivated by its creator's determination to succeed against all the odds.

Felix Kambwiri, 45, has spent the last four months constructing his dream machine out of scrap metal and fibreglass in his garage in the village of Gobede, 90 kilometres (55 miles) north of the capital Lilongwe.

Clambering inside the one-seater cockpit, he swings the door closed, turns the key, pumps the pedals, and the 125-cc secondhand engine roars into life as orange lights flash impressively.