By Kendall Downing
PLAINFIELD, Ind. – It was supposed to be a world-record setting feat for charity. A father and son from Plainfield took off last month in a single-engine plane for a 30-day flight around the world. Sadly, their adventure came to a tragic end.
The trip raised more than $500,000 for charity. Babar Suleman and his 17-year-old son Haris were on the last leg of the incredible flight, when their plane crashed into the Pacific Ocean on Tuesday night, near American Samoa.
Crews pulled out the body of Haris Suleman, but they’ve been unable to locate Babar. Family members hold out hope that he’s still alive.
Wednesday night students at Plainfield High School held a candlelight vigil to remember their friend Haris. Haris was a rising senior. Students said he was a loyal friend, fun-loving, who never said a bad word about anyone.
“He was a good person, made everyone laugh and smile,” said Khalil Eljirby, a classmate and friend.
FOX59 first talked to Babar Suleman and his son Haris back in May, as the two were making final plans for their summer trip. The 30-day flight around the world was an adventure and a charity mission to raise money for schools for Pakistani children.
The team had a goal of $1 million dollars; they’d raised more than half of that amount.
It’s a trip the father and son duo documented in blog entry after blog entry, through the summer.
Wednesday the scenes of excitement simply seemed so far away.
“Right now, it’s just to be there for my family to stay strong,” said Hiba Suleman.
She rushed home from Washington, D.C. to be with her mother. Hiba Suleman said she talked to both her brother and father on Tuesday and hoped she’d see them soon.
“They were almost here, so close to home, just seems unfair. But God had a plan,” said Suleman.
Haris and his dad were nearly finished with their journey. By Saturday, family expected them home.
“The committee that organized a sendoff had gotten together recently and were organizing a welcome party. We had yellow banners to welcome them back,” said Azher Khan, a family friend and president of the local chapter of Seeds of Learning.
The family doesn’t know specifics about the crash. The U.S. Coast Guard office out of Hawaii is investigating the case. All family members have been told is that the plane went down right after takeoff on Tuesday night in American Samoa, about 23 miles off the coast. Crews found Haris’ body, but Babar is still missing and feared dead.
Hiba Suleman says the family will pray to find her father alive and hold on to the memories of her kid brother.
“He was doing something adventurous. He was doing something for a great cause, and it was so selfless for such a young person. He was only 17, and I hope that people take that as something to encourage them to get involved and see him as a role model,” she said.
Suleman said her family’s concern now is locating her father and also getting the body of her brother back to the states. Flights to American Samoa are limited, and it could take a number of days.
