Vijaypat Singhania | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Indian |
| Occupation | Businessman, was Chairman Of Raymonds Ltd. |
| Known for | Setting a World Record for highest altitude gained travelling in a hot air balloon at the age of 67 |
| Title | Sheriff of Mumbai |
| Term | 1 year |
| Predecessor | Sadruddin Daya |
| Successor | Indu Shahani |
| Children | Gautam Singhania |
Vijaypat Singhania was the chairman emeritus of the Raymond Group of clothing and textiles and a former Sheriff of Mumbai, from 19 December 2005 to 18 December 2006.
A keen aviator, Singhania holds the world record for highest altitude gained travelling in a hot air balloon, notably carried out at the age of 67.[1] Singhania also holds a world record for his solo microlight flight from UK to India in 1988. Singhania has flight experience of over 5,000 hours. In 1994, he won the gold medal in the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale air race covering a distance of 34,000 km spanning 24 days. To mark this occasion he was conferred the rank of Hon. Air Commodore of the Indian Air Force. In 2003, he was awarded Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award by the Government of India, in 2005 he was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Aero Club, and in 2006,the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award by the Government of India.[2][3] Singhania also wrote a book 'An Angel in the Cockpit' account of his journey from the UK to India on a microlight aircraft in 1988. In March 2007 he was nominated to be Chairman of the Governing Council, IIM Ahmedabad succeeding N.R. Narayana Murthy.
References
- ^ "Indian sets balloon flight record". BBC. 26 November 2005. p. 1. Retrieved 6 March 2009.
- ^ "Adventure award for Vijaypat Singhania". The Tribune, India. 20 May 2003. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
- ^ "Padma Awards" (PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 November 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
Bibliography
- Singhania, Vijaypat (2005). An Angel in the Cockpit: the true story of a death-defying flight across 5000 miles of land and sea. New Delhi: Roli. p. 288. ISBN 81-7436-427-7.
| Preceded by Sadruddin Daya | Sheriff of Mumbai 2005-12-20 to 2006-12-19 | Succeeded by Indu Shahani |