- By Nicholas Rutherford
- BBC Scotland News
Jun 22, 2023 at 12:10pm BST
Updated 1 hour ago
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Suleman Dawood and his father Shahzada Dawood are on the Titanic submarine
A teenager trapped in a submersible that went missing during a dive to the Titanic wreck is a student in Glasgow, BBC Scotland has learned.
Suleman Dawood, 19, is a student at the University of Strathclyde.
He is one of five people on board the submarine, including his father Shahzada, 48, a businessman living in Surbiton, south west London.
A spokesman for the university said it was deeply concerned for the student, his father and others on the ship.
“Our thoughts are with their families and loved ones and we continue to hope for a positive outcome,” he said.
They have been trapped on the submersible Titan since Sunday, when contact was lost about an hour and a half after the mid-Atlantic dive.
There is limited oxygen on board and it was estimated that supplies would run out around 1000 GMT on Thursday.
A full-scale search operation is being conducted from Boston, Massachusetts, trying to locate the ship and those on board.
Earlier this week, a family statement described Suleman as a “huge fan of sci-fi literature and learning new things,” who is interested in Rubik’s Cube and plays volleyball.
A former student of ACS International School Cobham in Surrey, he has just completed his first year at Strathclyde Business School.
The university’s rector and vice-chancellor, Prof Sir Jim McDonald, has written to the students to let them know Suleman is in the missing agency.
In the message, he said, “It is with a heavy heart that I am writing to share the news that one of our students, Suleman Dawood, is a passenger aboard the submersible that has gone missing in the North Atlantic.”
“We are deeply concerned for Suleman, his father and others involved in this incident. I know that you will join me in sending our thoughts and prayers to their families and loved ones.”
He said the student health team is available to support those affected by the news.
Image source: Getty Images
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Suleman is a student at Strathclyde Business School in Glasgow
Suleman’s father comes from one of Pakistan’s wealthiest families and is vice chairman of Pakistani conglomerate Engro Corporation, a large fertilizer company.
He is married to Christine and they have one other child, Alina. The family spent a month in Canada before the dive.
Shahzada also supports two charities founded by King Charles – the British Asian Trust and the Prince’s Trust International.
He studied in Philadelphia, USA, and at the University of Buckingham in England, where he graduated in 1998.
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Watch: The latest on the Titanic submarine… in 70 seconds
His family said he is interested in “exploring different natural habitats” and has previously spoken at both the United Nations and the Oxford Union.
The father and son are on board the submarine alongside British adventurer Hamish Harding, former French Navy diver Paul-Henry Nargeolet and Stockton Rush, the managing director of OceanGate, the operator of the Titanic voyages.
OceanGate charges US$250,000 per person for the deep sea excursion to the Titanic shipwreck which lies 12,500 feet (3,800m) below the surface of the Atlantic.
Image Credit: US COAST GUARD HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock
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Aberdeenshire-based Deep Energy is taking part in the rescue mission
The Titan and her passengers are at the center of a massive international rescue mission that includes a Scottish vessel normally used to work on pipelines in the North Sea.
An aircraft from RAF Lossiemouth is also said to join the search operation.
The C17 Globemaster will later depart for Canada with ancillary equipment believed to be cables to aid in the search and rescue effort.
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A plane is scheduled to leave RAF Lossiemouth to join the search later on Thursday
The Department of Defense received a request for assistance Wednesday night and has since moved assets to help with the operation.
Meanwhile, the plight of Suleman and his fellow passengers was raised at First Minister’s Question Time in the Scottish Parliament.
First Minister Humza Yousaf said: “I am deeply concerned. I think we all are. But we all hope and pray for good news.”
“My thoughts are very much with the affected families and communities.”