Hamish Harding
Official Blue Origin portrait, 2022
Born
George Hamish Livingston Harding

(1964-06-24)24 June 1964
Hammersmith, London, United Kingdom
Died18 June 2023(2023-06-18) (aged 58)
North Atlantic Ocean
(near the wreck of the Titanic)
Cause of deathImplosion of Titan submersible
Alma materPembroke College, Cambridge (BA, MA)
Occupations
  • Businessman
  • aviator
  • explorer
Known forCrew pilot for the record-breaking flight mission One More Orbit, July 2019
SpouseLinda Harding
Children2

George Hamish Livingston Harding (24 June 1964 – 18 June 2023) was a British businessman, pilot, and adventurer based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). He was the founder of Action Group and was chairman of Action Aviation, an international aircraft brokerage company with headquarters in Dubai. A member of The Explorers Club, he visited the South Pole several times, descended to the Challenger Deep of the Mariana Trench, travelled into space, and held three Guinness World Records.

Harding died with four others inside the Titan submersible that imploded in the North Atlantic Ocean while en route to view the wreck of the Titanic.

Early life and education

George Hamish Livingston Harding was born in Hammersmith, London, on 24 June 1964. He spent his early childhood in Hong Kong, then a Crown Colony, and was inspired by the Apollo 11 landing while watching the event on TV with his parents in 1969.[1] He was educated at The King's School, an independent day school in the city of Gloucester in South West England from 1975 to 1982.[2] At 13, he joined the Air Training Corps, a youth organization sponsored by the Royal Air Force, and flew Chipmunk aeroplanes.[1][2] He earned his pilot licence in 1985 while attending Pembroke College, Cambridge.[1] He was a graduate of Cambridge University with a degree in Natural Sciences and a post-graduate degree in Chemical Engineering.[3]

Career and adventures

In the 1990s, Harding worked in the information technology industry. He helped establish Logica Middle East in Dubai and Saudi Arabia, as well as serving as the Managing Director of Logica India until he founded the private investment company Action Group in 1999. In 2002 he founded the aviation company Action Aviation.[1]

Harding worked with an Antarctic VIP tourism company, White Desert, using a Gulfstream G550 to introduce the first regular business jet service to the Antarctic.[4] Harding also visited the South Pole several times; he accompanied Buzz Aldrin in 2016 when he became the oldest person to reach the South Pole (age 86) and his son when he became the youngest (12).[1]

Between 9 and 11 July 2019, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing, Harding, along with Terry Virts, led a team of aviators that took the Guinness World Record for a circumnavigation of the Earth via the North and South Poles in a Gulfstream G650ER in 46 hours and 40 minutes. The One More Orbit mission launched and landed at the Shuttle Landing Facility (Space Florida) at NASA Kennedy Space Center in the United States.[5]

On 5 March 2021, Harding and Victor Vescovo dived to the deepest point of the Mariana Trench, the Challenger Deep, at a depth of approximately 11,000 m (36,000 feet), in the two-person deep-submergence vehicle DSV Limiting Factor, setting the Guinness World Records for greatest distance covered at full ocean depth and greatest time spent at full ocean depth.[6][7] His 13-year-old son accompanied the mission on the surface support ship DSSV Pressure Drop.[8][9]

Harding flew to space as part of the suborbital Blue Origin NS-21 mission, on 4 June 2022, on the fifth crewed spaceflight of the New Shepard rocket.[3][10] After travelling to space, he advocated for space tourists (paid recreational spaceflight passengers) to be called astronauts.[11] He also advocated for the United Arab Emirates to expand its space programme.[12]

In September 2022, Harding's company Action Aviation supplied a customised Boeing 747-400 aircraft to transport eight wild cheetahs from Namibia to India to launch the reintroduction of the cheetah to India project of the Indian Government and the Cheetah Conservation Fund in Namibia (CCF).[13] Cheetahs were declared extinct in India in 1952.[14] This conservation project was designated a "flagged expedition" by the Explorers Club with club members Harding and Laurie Marker, founder of the CCF, carrying the flag on the flight to India.[15]

Titan expedition and death

Harding was onboard the Titan, a vessel owned by OceanGate, Inc., to view the Titanic wreckage, when the vessel lost contact with the above-water ship, MV Polar Prince, on 18 June 2023.[16] Search-and-rescue missions involved water and air support from the United States, Canada and France.[17]

On 22 June, two days before what would have been Harding’s 59th birthday, a debris field was discovered approximately 490 metres (1,600 ft) from the bow of the Titanic. A United States Coast Guard press conference later confirmed that the debris was consistent with a catastrophic loss of the pressure hull, resulting in an implosion and the instant death of all on board.[18]

Personal life

Harding was married to his wife Linda and he had two sons and two stepchildren. He lived in Dubai with his family.[19]

Awards and recognition

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Williams, Alex (22 June 2023). "Hamish Harding, an Explorer Who Knew No Bounds, Dies at 58". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 22 June 2023. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  2. 1 2 Norris, Phil (23 June 2023). "The King's School pays tribute to Hamish Harding, former pupil who died in Titanic sub incident". Gloucestershire Echo. Archived from the original on 24 June 2023. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  3. 1 2 Davenport, Justin (4 June 2022). "Blue Origin launches NS-21 suborbital flight with six passengers". Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 Ambrose, Tom (19 June 2023). "Hamish Harding: the British explorer missing at sea near the Titanic". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 19 June 2023. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  5. ↑ "Hamish Harding, Terry Virts and Qatar Executive Smash World Circumnavigation Speed Record". aviationpros.com. 15 July 2019. Archived from the original on 29 May 2022. Retrieved 5 May 2022.
  6. ↑ Mathai, Anjuly. "British explorer Hamish Harding on his journey to the deepest point on earth". The Week. Archived from the original on 5 May 2022. Retrieved 5 May 2022.
  7. 1 2 3 Millward, Adam (29 December 2021). "Earth's tallest mountain, Mauna Kea, ascended for the first time". Guinness World Records. Archived from the original on 5 May 2022. Retrieved 5 May 2022.
  8. ↑ "Video: Dubai resident Hamish Harding to dive to ocean's deepest point to study marine life, impact of pollution". www.gulftoday.ae. Archived from the original on 5 May 2022. Retrieved 5 May 2022.
  9. ↑ Haziq, Saman. "Hamish Harding on his journey to the Earth's deepest point and back". Khaleej Times. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022. Retrieved 5 May 2022.
  10. ↑ "Watch: UAE adventurer in space on Blue Origin flight". Khaleej Times. Archived from the original on 27 June 2022. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
  11. ↑ Nasir, Sarwat (13 June 2022). "Flat-Earthers should get a first-class ticket for Blue Origin, says UAE space tourist". The National. Archived from the original on 28 June 2022. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
  12. ↑ Sircar, Nandini. "UAE: Meet the expat preparing to take off on Blue Origin's spaceflight". Khaleej Times. Archived from the original on 28 June 2022. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
  13. ↑ "Why details of the cheetahs coming to India are crucial for success of the introduction programme". India Today. Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  14. ↑ "8 cheetahs arrive to India from Namibia as part of reintroduction project". 17 September 2022. Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  15. ↑ "In Jumbo Jet, 8 Wild Cheetahs from Namibia are Coming to India for Historic Translocation". News18. 14 September 2022. Archived from the original on 22 March 2023. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  16. ↑ "What we know about the passengers on board missing Titanic submersible". Sky News. 19 June 2023. Archived from the original on 19 June 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
  17. ↑ Henley, Jon (21 June 2023). "Titanic sub live updates: vessel may have less than 20 hours of oxygen left, says US Coast Guard, as search continues". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  18. ↑ Hamish Harding, Shahzada Dawood and son Suleman: Who is on board Titanic sub? Archived 19 June 2023 at the Wayback Machine, BBC
  19. ↑ Ng, Ellie (20 June 2023). "Who is missing British billionaire Hamish Harding?". The Independent. Archived from the original on 20 June 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
  20. ↑ Newman, Vicki (23 June 2023). "Record-breaking explorer Hamish Harding dies in Titan submersible tragedy". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
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