Hiba Suleman said of her brother and father "With a trip
like this, there's always a risk, and they did prepare
for that risk. You can plan all you want, but sometimes
things just don't happen the way you planned."
It was reported that before the trip the father and son
took classes in how to survive an ocean landing. They
packed a life raft with food and other supplies in case
they had to bail out over water. They calculated their
fuel needs and plotted their course, arranging stops in
Europe, Africa, Asia and the South Pacific.
Update - July 27, 2014 – Coast Guard suspends active search
for 58-year-old Babar Suleman. “The decision to suspend
a search and rescue case is one of the most difficult
decisions I have to make,” said Rear Admiral Cari
Thomas, Commander, Fourteenth Coast Guard District.
“I want to extend my sincere condolences to the family and
friends of the Sulemans. After conducting an exhaustive
search with our partner agencies in American Samoa and
crisscrossing more than 4,000 miles from the air and
surface of the ocean and finding no sign of Mr. Suleman,
I have made the decision to suspend the active search.”
The Coast Guard active search consisted of an HC-130
Hercules airplane crew from Air Station Barbers Point,
members of the Coast Guard Auxiliary, the American Samoa
Marine Patrol, American Samoa Department of Marine and
Wildlife Resources, and Tug Sa’ilele.
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