In space, deep in the oceans, around the planet… Hamish Harding, who went missing during a visit to the Titanic in a submersible, is familiar with extreme explorations. The British businessman has also collected several Guinness records. Apart from his adventures that he recounts on social networks, few details are known about the career and fortune of the CEO of the private jet sales company Action Aviation founded in 2004.
The 58-year-old businessman announced on social media on Saturday that he was part of the five-passenger crew of the tourist submersible. The small submarine, which was to visit the wreck of the famous ocean liner, was then reported missing in a remote area of the Atlantic Ocean. “I am proud to finally announce that I have joined @oceangateexped for their RMS Titanic mission as Mission Specialist on the submarine that descends to Titanic,” he wrote on Instagram. “A weather window has just opened and we will try to dive tomorrow,” he added.
From the Mariana Trench to Space
“The sub has been successfully launched and Hamish is currently diving,” his company tweeted on Sunday. In May 2021, on Instagram, he described himself as a “husband, father of two, avid explorer” living in Dubai. “I take every opportunity to travel, break world records and fly jets.” Hamish Harding went into space a year ago, aboard Blue Origin’s rocket, New Shepard, for a ten-minute flight marking the fifth successful manned mission for Jeff Bezos’ company. The latter is also his “mentor”.
He holds several mentions in the Guinness World Records. In July 2019, he was part of a team that flew the fastest airplane around the Earth passing through both poles, in forty-six hours, 40 minutes and 22 seconds. In March 2021, he dived with fellow explorer Victor Vescovo deep into the Mariana Trench, the deepest part of the ocean known to date, aboard a two-seater submersible. This mission was the longest spent at such a depth (4 hours and 15 minutes) with the longest distance traveled (4,600 meters).
“His excitement was palpable”
“I believe that it is you who create your own luck in life,” he said in an interview with the Arabian Gulf Business Insight website. “You create the environment around you where luck comes or doesn’t come based on your decisions, your anticipation of things going wrong, and the actions you take before they go wrong.” Apart from these exploits, he also participated in a cheetah reintroduction mission in India.
Richard Garriott de Cayeux, president of The Explorers Club in New York, of which Hamish Harding is a founding member, said he saw him last week: “His excitement was palpable “, he said. “He was eager to conduct research on the site.” Hamish Harding is a graduate of Cambridge University in Natural Sciences and Chemical Engineering. With his wife Linda, he has two sons, including Giles, who at the age of 12 in 2020 became the youngest person to visit the South Pole, reports the Times.