Haris Suleman

Haris Suleman (October 3, 1996 – July 23, 2014) was a Pakistani-American pilot attempting to fly around the world in 30 days to promote education when his plane crashed in the Pacific Ocean, killing him and leaving his father Babar Suleman (December 27, 1958 – July 23, 2014), also on board, missing.[1]

Haris Suleman
Born(1996-10-03)October 3, 1996
DiedJuly 23, 2014(2014-07-23) (aged 17)
Pacific Ocean
Burial placeMaple Hill Cemetery, Plainfield, Indiana
Alma materPlainfield High School
OccupationHigh school student
Known forAttempted around-the-world flight

Haris Suleman was a student at Plainfield High School in Plainfield, Indiana.[2] The father-son duo were raising money for a charity organisation based in Pakistan, The Citizens Foundation, which educates Pakistan's poorest children. They departed Indiana on 19 June 2014 and were attempting to fly around the world in 30 days – a 26,500-mile (42,673-km) journey with 25 stops in 15 countries – and hoped to break the world record for the youngest pilot-in-command in history to circumnavigate the earth in a single-engine plane in 30 days.[2][3][4][5] They were on the final leg of their trip, flying from Pago Pago in American Samoa to Hawaii via Kiribati in their Hawker Beechcraft Bonanza A36 – (registration N20TC[6]) also planning a stop in California before returning to Indiana – when their plane crashed into the Pacific Ocean on 23 July 2014 shortly after taking off from Pago Pago International Airport.[2][7]

If Haris and Babar had completed the trip, Haris would have set the record for the fastest circumnavigation of the world in a single-engine plane, and he would have become the youngest pilot to lead such a journey. [8]

On August 20, 2014, the government of Pakistan posthumously conferred the Sitara-e-Imtiaz award by President Mamnoon Hussain to Haris Suleman as a recipient of the third-highest civil award in Pakistan. [9]

Haris Suleman is buried at Maple Hill Cemetery in Plainfield, Indiana.

References
  1. "Pakistani-American Haris Suleman's aircraft crashes into sea". Dawn.Com. Retrieved 2014-07-24.
  2. Farell, Paul, "Haris & Babar Suleman: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know," heavy.com, July 23, 2014, 3:18 pm EDT.
  3. Anonymous "Haris Suleman dies in crash during around-the-world flight," bbc.com, 23 July 2014.
  4. Almasy, Steve, and Laura Smith-Spark, "Teen pilot killed at sea in quest to set world record," cnn.com, July 24, 2014, 2:21 PM EDT.
  5. Siegel, Nan, "Tweets Heard Round the World," Aviation History, November 2014, p. 10.
  6. NTSB Identification: WPR14LA309
  7. "Pakistani-American pilot Haris Suleman's aircraft crashes into sea, body recovered: Reports | Pakistan | Dunya News". Dunyanews.tv. Retrieved 2014-07-24.
  8. ""While I was sharing those memories with others, at that time the accident had already happened"". Time. Retrieved 2019-12-28.
  9. "Medal of Honour: Pakistan confers Sitara-e-Imtiaz on Teenage Pilot Haris Suleman". TCF - USA | The Citizens Foundation. 2014-08-20. Retrieved 2019-12-28.


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