Spokeswoman: Indiana teen pilot dies in crash; father missing

A family spokeswoman says an Indiana teenager was killed when his plane crashed while trying to set a record for an around-the-world flight.

Annie Hayat said Wednesday that the plane flown by 17-year-old Haris Suleman went down shortly after leaving Pago Pago in American Samoa. Suleman and his father, Babar Suleman, were on board.

Hayat says the body of Haris Suleman has been recovered. Crews were still looking for his father.

The pair was expected to arrive in Salinas or Monterey Friday, according to their press agent.

Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor in Los Angeles said the Hawker Beechcraft plane crashed into the ocean Tuesday night under unknown circumstances.

The two left Indiana June 19 in hopes of breaking a world record and raising $1 million for a nonprofit that builds schools in Pakistan. They planned to return home Sunday.

The nonprofit organization the pair planned to help, the Citizens Foundation, released a statement Wednesday.

“It is with great sadness that we can confirm that a Beechcraft aircraft flown by Babar Suleman and his son Haris, from Plainfield, Indiana, has crashed into the ocean near American Samoa,” the organization said. “We ask that the family’s privacy is respected at this very difficult time.”