This commute is plane crazy! Locksmith designs and builds his own wooden aircraft to get to work (and he even parks it on the street outside)

  • Frantisek Hadrava, 45, of Zdikov, Czech Republic, loves planes so much built his own made out of wood
  • The locksmith spent two years designing and constructing the aircraft which cost 100,000 Czech Koruna
  • The flight takes less than 7 minutes and he insists the plane is cheaper than if he were to travel by car

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Frantisek Hadrava is not your normal work commuter.

For starters, when the Czech locksmith parks his ride to work in the car park next to his building, he has to use four parking spaces.

The 45-year-old also felt driving to work for 14 minutes was too much. So he cut his travel time in half.

You see Mr Hadrava, 45, of Zdikov in the Czech Republic, now travels to work in an ultralight wooden plane after spending two years designing and building the aircraft.

Frantisek Hadrava lands with his wooden plane in Ckyne, Czech Republic, during a flight on his way to work

Frantisek Hadrava lands with his wooden plane in Ckyne, Czech Republic, during a flight on his way to work

The wooden plane parked outside Mr Hadrava's work in Ckyne, Czech Republic, takes up four car spaces

The wooden plane parked outside Mr Hadrava's work in Ckyne, Czech Republic, takes up four car spaces

A happy commute: A day shift begins for Mr Hadrava at 6am and he parks his plane in a car parking lot at work

A happy commute: A day shift begins for Mr Hadrava at 6am and he parks his plane in a car parking lot at work

The flight takes less than 7 minutes and he insists the plane is cheaper than if he were to travel by car. The commute is 15 km away from his home by road.

Based on the U.S. design of light planes called Mini-Max, the Vampira aircraft cost him about 100,000 Czech Koruna (about 3700 Euros) to build.

The plane has an open cockpit, propeller powered by a 3-cylinder engine made by Czech firm Verner. 

Mr Hadrava said that the aircraft, which is almost entirely made of wood, had a fuel consumption of 6 litres of petrol per hour and can reach a top speed of 91 miles/hr.

'It takes me about 12-14 minutes by car,' Hadrava said.

'By plane, it would take around 4-5 minutes if I flew directly, but I take a bit of a detour so that I don't disturb people early in the morning. So it takes about 7 minutes.' 

Mr Hadrava prepares for his work flight on Wednesday. The commute is 15 km away from his home by road

Mr Hadrava prepares for his work flight on Wednesday. The commute is 15 km away from his home by road

Frantisek Hadrava prepares for his flight
Frantisek Hadrava prepares for his flight by cleaning the windshield

Mr Hadrava prepares the plane for the commute to work on Wednesday morning (left) while giving the windshield particular attention (right)

The cockpit detail of Frantisek Hadrava's plane, which he designed and constructed himself over two years

The cockpit detail of Frantisek Hadrava's plane, which he designed and constructed himself over two years

Mr Hadrava, preparing for his flight, likes to wear goggles and a leather helmet with a white scarf for his plane journeys

Mr Hadrava, preparing for his flight, likes to wear goggles and a leather helmet with a white scarf for his plane journeys

However, Mr Hadrava can only use the plane if the weather is clear.

Early on Wednesday morning, Mr Hadrava flew his usual path through the forested, hilly foothills of the Sumava mountains for his 6 a.m. shift at Drevostroj, a small factory in the town of Ckyne making machine tools for the forestry industry.

He landed on a meadow across the road from the factory.

He then needs to push the plane across the road, leading to the German border, to a parking lot outside the factory.

The rest of the firm's employees, arriving later luckily, park their cars close by. 

Mr Hadrava has also built a replica of the German World War One triplane Fokker Dr. I, and his next plan is to construct another historical plane, the French Deperdussin.    

Mr Hadrava said that the aircraft, which is almost entirely made of wood, had a fuel consumption of 6 litres of petrol per hour and can reach a top speed of 91 miles/hr

Mr Hadrava said that the aircraft, which is almost entirely made of wood, had a fuel consumption of 6 litres of petrol per hour and can reach a top speed of 91 miles/hr

Mr Hadrava prepares for his work commute on Wednesday. The plane has an open cockpit, propeller powered by a 3-cylinder engine made by Czech firm Verner

Mr Hadrava prepares for his work commute on Wednesday. The plane has an open cockpit, propeller powered by a 3-cylinder engine made by Czech firm Verner

Next stop the office! Mr Hadrava climbs aboard for his 7-minute journey to work as a locksmith on Wednesday. He said: 'By plane, it would take around 4-5 minutes if I flew directly, but I take a bit of a detour so that I don't disturb people early in the morning. So it takes about 7 minutes'

Next stop the office! Mr Hadrava climbs aboard for his 7-minute journey to work as a locksmith on Wednesday. He said: 'By plane, it would take around 4-5 minutes if I flew directly, but I take a bit of a detour so that I don't disturb people early in the morning. So it takes about 7 minutes'

Time for take-off... Mr Hadrava with his plane at a field which he uses as a makeshift airport for his work commute

Time for take-off... Mr Hadrava with his plane at a field which he uses as a makeshift airport for his work commute

Mr Hadrava flies during testing sessions with his plane in the Czech Republic on Tuesday this week

Mr Hadrava flies during testing sessions with his plane in the Czech Republic on Tuesday this week

Success! The wooden plane soars above the Czech Republic countryside early on Wednesday

Success! The wooden plane soars above the Czech Republic countryside early on Wednesday

 Reversing the plane is a little bit more difficult and time consuming than your average car drive to work

 Reversing the plane is a little bit more difficult and time consuming than your average car drive to work

Mr Hadrava pulls his plane on a road after landing near his work in Ckyne, Czech Republic, on Wednesday

Mr Hadrava pulls his plane on a road after landing near his work in Ckyne, Czech Republic, on Wednesday

Almost at work! Mr Hadrava pulls his plane along the road outside his workplace at Ckyne in the Czech Republic

Almost at work! Mr Hadrava pulls his plane along the road outside his workplace at Ckyne in the Czech Republic

A day shift begins for Mr Hadrava at 6 am and he parks his plane in a parking lot at work, before everyone else arrives

A day shift begins for Mr Hadrava at 6 am and he parks his plane in a parking lot at work, before everyone else arrives

The plane commute requires understanding from work colleagues, who have to keep well clear of the aircraft in the carpark

The plane commute requires understanding from work colleagues, who have to keep well clear of the aircraft in the carpark

Fortunately, there are no parking fees at Mr Hadrava's workplace when he parks his plane across four spaces

Fortunately, there are no parking fees at Mr Hadrava's workplace when he parks his plane across four spaces

The plane is removed from its 'hangar'  for a test flight earlier this week after two years of construction

The plane is removed from its 'hangar'  for a test flight earlier this week after two years of construction

The wings are not attached to the plane until it arrives at the airfield to avoid any crashes with other cars

The wings are not attached to the plane until it arrives at the airfield to avoid any crashes with other cars

The plane is towed by car around the Czech countryside when it is not airborne for his commute to work

The plane is towed by car around the Czech countryside when it is not airborne for his commute to work

Mr Hadrava drives a car pulling his plane into a field in the Czech Republic for an earlier test flight this week

Mr Hadrava drives a car pulling his plane into a field in the Czech Republic for an earlier test flight this week

Mr Hadrava and a friend carry a wing for his plane before the test flight as they assemble the aircraft

Mr Hadrava and a friend carry a wing for his plane before the test flight as they assemble the aircraft

The pair attach a wing to his plane before the test flight this week. It was the end of a long journey for the locksmith

The pair attach a wing to his plane before the test flight this week. It was the end of a long journey for the locksmith

Mr Hadrava with a friend pours petrol into his plane before the earlier test flight this week

Mr Hadrava with a friend pours petrol into his plane before the earlier test flight this week

The test flight begins as Mr Hadrava takes the plane out on to the runway in his town of Zdikov, Czech Republic

The test flight begins as Mr Hadrava takes the plane out on to the runway in his town of Zdikov, Czech Republic

The aircraft, which is almost entirely made of wood, can reach a top speed of 125 km/h during the 7-minute work commute

The aircraft, which is almost entirely made of wood, can reach a top speed of 125 km/h during the 7-minute work commute

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