Dr. Rizwan Hameed Malik

Tell us about yourself in general (outside of the hobby e.g. family, childhood, education, profession etc.).

Doc.:    I was born on January 30th, 1963 at Hyderabad. My father was an assistant civil engineer, working for military engineering services (MES). It was a humble beginning for him, but he worked honestly till he retired in 1992, as a chief engineer from MES. Because of the nature of his job, we moved frequently to various cities/cantonments, often switching schools.

I did my FSc from Sir Syed College Rawalpindi in 1981, and got admission in King Edward Medical College Lahore, from where I graduated in 1987. My Internship at Mayo hospital Lahore completed in 1989. The following year I went to Scotland to sit for FRCS part I. Joined Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, in 1990 and worked in General Surgery for 2 years. Got into a residency program at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Islamabad (PIMS). This was on-job training for the final Fellowship examination, I sat the same in 1996. Got my FRCS from Royal College of Surgeons, Ireland. Worked in Ireland for about a year prior to my exam.

Came back to join PIMS in 1996, as a senior Registrar Orthopaedics. Now I am working at the post of Assistant professor, Orthopaedics at PIMS.

What made you come into this hobby and when did you start?

Doc.:    My brother, Salmaan (1½ years younger to me) and I generally started everything together. Aeromodelling for us started in the summer of 1978, when one of our aunts living in USA, visited Pakistan. She got us our first rubber powered Guillow’s kit, SPAD, a WW1 French war bird. Back then the box contained a plan, marked sheets of balsa, plastic cowl, wheels and a prop. We put in countless hours to cut out the ribs, formers and longerons from those sheets using my father’s razor blades…the only tool we had! Pelikan all purpose glue was used to put the kit together. I still remember sitting at the table watching and smelling the intoxicating glue cure, for next 5-6 hours!  Anyway the bipe was covered using a yellow tissue (fine paper used to make traditional kites). It looked great with all the decals (water transfer), red propeller and vintage black wheels. It never did fly for more than 2 feet,(thinking retrospectively, it probably had a serious CG issue) but it was our pride and joy for a long time. Few months later my father bought us a rubber powered P51D Mustang kit, it was also by Guillow’s. Again similar process…but this time we had another tool in our arsenal…some sand paper! Mustang was finished in grey tissue, and this time we were little wiser in figuring out the CG, and voila,   it flew a magnificent distance and duration (10 feet & 1 - 2 min…more or less ). I was in 9th grade then.

It was 1980, 11th grade at Sir Syed college Rawalpindi, when I discovered the aeromodelling bug in one of my class fellows, Asad Khan (now Col. Asad, Radiologist in army). He introduced me to glow and diesel engines and control line planes. Bought my first Davis-Charlton 0.075 cubic in, diesel engine from Pindi, and a Piper Cherokee C/L kit from Lahore. This combo never really got airborne for any respectable duration. We just couldn’t figure out the correct fuel, needle and compression setup hence that poor engine mostly ended up on wooden plank test-bench.
The following year we had access to Model Airplane News, MAN magazine, this was honestly the first time we learnt how things are done. We requested my cousin in USA to get us MRC, our first radio. Got our first R/C engine,an OS 0.10 FSR, and a balsa kit of Junior 100. Also bought some more tools like hand drill, X’acto knife and a saw. Open frame wing was covered with tissue and the fuse was enamel painted! With no one around for guidance, the maiden flight was not dramatic at all…Jr 100 rolled few meters took off banked to the right and hit the terra firma. Kept repairing it and kept destroying it probably 5 – 6 times, for next few months. This was an extremely exciting endless exercise for us during those good old days (no microprocessor, cell phones or 60 TV channels). I then designed and built a, 24” span, trainer (compact version of Jr 100) covered it with heat shrink film and powered it with a Cox 0.049 power plant. It did not have an undercarriage and only had 2 channel controls. Bingo!!…this Li’l sparrow (as we named it) was an amazing low speed flyer. My bro and I honed our flying skill to the extent that one of us used to sit in my father’s Beetle, and the other used to hand launch the sparrow towards the front of the car and jump behind the steering wheel…we actually flew the plane few meters away and little in front of the moving car on relatively vacant roads of Islamabad. 5ml of tank capacity would keep the bird air borne for good 3 – 4 mins!! Then there was no stopping us. As they phrase it,…rest was just history.
1981, we rebuilt the Jr 100 from scratch and christened it Eaglet (for some ‘jinxed’ reasons all subsequent planes were named after birds)
1982, built SIG Kadet Jr, 0.40 sized & christened it Falcon. Phoenix a 0.20 sized low winger designed & built by my bro…should have been named terrorized turkey!!
 

1983, self designed & scratch built a 0.40 sized sports plane called Canary bird. During the same year my brother flew sportsman category at Lahore competition and a won 2nd place with Canary bird.
1984 - 85 my brother left for USA, I was already in the 3rd year of my Med. College. I built a pattern ship called Magic from a Japanese Kit. It was designed by Hano Pretner. Had rear exhaust OS 46 with Hatori tuned pipe. Also built a SIG Cub 40. Did not get to fly either of these much because of my studies.
1996, I met Mr Habib ur Rehman (AKA Peer)and my aeromedelling bug suddenly woke up from its ten year slumber. Bought an ARF low winged trainer,.040 sized from Hobby Lobby Lhr, to learn the flying again. Fun flys were in fashion at our field, so I scratch build two profile 0.40 sized Gee Bees, from plans borrowed from Mr Razak.
2001 - 02, scratch built Kadet senior 78” span powered by good old faithful OS 46. My friend Cap.Kamal Butt suggested that we build CG’s Extra 300 S, 72” span. The inspiration came from Mr Aamir Waheed. He flew the same machine with MDS 1.48, it was poetry in motion at a competition in Islamabad. So Kamal and I ordered two of those from Hobby Lobby in pre cut kit form. I powered mine with OS 1.08 and finished it in Carden color scheme. Nicad battery failure resulted in a relatively short life span of this Extra. I was really depressed but learnt everything there is, about freakin’ Nicads.