Mr. Mansoor Shaikh (Skysailor)

 Tell us about yourself, outside of the hobby e.g. family, childhood, education etc?

Mr. Mansoor Shaikh: I am indeed in illustrious company being asked to write as an "Icon". That certainly I am not because I think of myself as a middle of the road, no nonsense, no fuss modeler. The name is Mansoor Shaikh and I will be 60 years young later this year. Dad was commissioned in the RIAF in May 1945 when he was 20 years old and had the opportunity to fly the Spitfire and the Hurricane and later opted for Pakistan on partition.

Early life was thus spent at air force bases at Risalpur, Quetta, Mauripur, Peshawer and we received our early schooling at the schools at or near the bases. In 1960, Dad joined PIA on deputation and after a few years at Rawalpindi and Lahore, we moved to Karachi where our mother and my brothers still reside.

I matriculated 10th grade from Karachi American School and joined Adamjee Science College. I graduated from NED Engineering College, Class of 1972, and worked for a few years in Karachi. In 1976 I was transferred to work in KSA. In 1979 I went to the USA and post-graduated in Civil Engineering in early 1980. Following a brief stint in Kuwait, I shifted to KSA and worked there till 1991.
I got married in 1981 and have a son and daughter by God' grace. From 1991 to 2001 we lived in Islamabad where the weekly flying sessions at F-9 Park were very enjoyable and many lasting friendships were made. This was the time when all Pakistan modeling meets were held on a yearly basis.

In 2003, the children having graduated from high school, we shifted to the UAE where they continued their education at the American University in Sharjah. I work with a Japanese construction company in Abu Dhabi while son Amin works as a Financial Analyst and daughter works freelance. The wife has had the patience to tolerate me and my hobby for the past 30 years. Bless her!

Bad eyesight prevented me from following Dad's profession but two of my brothers are 777 pilots in PIA while I and the youngest brother indulge in this hobby. Besides us, one of my cousins is 2 OC training pilots at PAF Risalpur and my wife’s cousins fly Airbuses, one in PIA and the other in Airblue. So I guess aviation runs deep in our family.