UAE's Pakistani celebrity expat to fly around the world in 28 days

From introducing 'bhangra rap' in Pakistan to being a host, actor and even an activist, Fakhr-e-Alam has made Pakistanis proud all over the world. The 42-year-old man is now ready to embark on an epic mission that will see him fly around the world in 28 days.

Fakhr is aspiring to become the first Pakistani in history to circumnavigate the globe, flying a single engine aircraft. "If I get boxed in with weather, then I will have to stay put on the ground. But yes, our current flight plan is 28 days.'

'Mission Parwaaz: One man, One plane, One epic journey around the world' - the banner on the website sums up Fakhr's ambitious plan that has been three years in the making.

Talking to Khaleej Times, Fakhr spoke about the purpose behind his mission, what it means to Pakistan and how the UAE inspired him.

Fakhr has been a UAE resident for one-and-a-half decades. The Pakistani entertainer said: "The UAE has been my home for 15 years. My kids were born here. Dubai, the great city, inspires you to do more - and excel."

"I really look forward to flying into Dubai during my round-the-world trip," Fakhr said.

Planning for mission

The planning of the mission has been a huge undertaking for Fakhr, who had initially announced his keenness to fly across the globe in 2015 but it took time to take off, he said. "As a kid, I wanted to be an air force pilot. All my toys were aeroplanes. In 2015, I finally made time and went to get my private pilot licence from Orlando, Florida.

"Once I had the licence, I knew I wanted to do more with it. I didn't want to fly for an airline or cargo service. I wanted to do something special... something that would make Pakistan proud. So in October 2015, I held a Press conference and announced Mission Parwaaz. Little did I know, it would be a Herculean task just to get this off the ground. Sponsors wouldn't understand what I wanted to do. I had lack of funding and of course, a serious lack of flight experience. No one wanted to give me their plane and no insurance company wanted to insure the trip - but here we are after three years. With loads of hard work, perseverance and support from my friend Kurt Roy, I finally got a plane and insurance. We will take off on October 6 at 7am from Clearwater Florida," an excited Fakhr said.

Funding and support

But how did he finally fund the epic mission? "Partially out of my own pocket, some loans from friends and a couple of sponsors," revealed Fakhr.

With this landmark odyssey, he also plans to break a few records on the way. "If I succeed, I will become the first Pakistani in the history of the world to have done this. Also, the day I start my journey, I will have a total of 112.9 flight hours, which is perhaps the least amount of flight experience any pilot has had prior to taking on a global circumnavigation, so that is special as well," he said.

Although Fakhr hasn't received any official support from the Pakistani government, some government officials and Pakistani celebrities have come out to back him on Twitter. "There has been support at individual level by a few members of the government but nothing official. Let's see how I am treated when I land in Pakistan," the man said.

Visa issues

The 28-day-long mission will see Fakhr fly through 31 cities and almost 25 countries, which obviously was one of his main concerns vis-à-vis visas. Fakhr said: "This (getting visas) was the greatest challenge and I would like to thank MoonJet and especially Kurt Roy for securing all overflight permits and landing permits. I must thank the US Consulate in Karachi that understood the urgency and issued an urgent visa. Likewise, I thank the Russian Consulate in Karachi for understanding the time sensitivity and issuing me a visa in less than two hours. Without these two visas, I would not be able to do this flight. So I am truly grateful."

Will he be flying to India, too? "It is very difficult for Pakistanis to get an Indian visa, hence I will fly over India enroute to Dhaka. But I carry a message of peace, love and harmony. Hope we can all learn to respect each other, be responsible in our rhetoric and find ways through dialogue to improve regional stability and peace," Fakhr underlined.

"The UAE is a great example of Indians, Pakistanis and so many nationalities living in peace and harmony with each other - working together, children going to the same schools. Wish we could learn from all this."

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