Five people who died after Titan, the submersible vessel exploring the Titanic shipwreck imploded, have been remembered by family and friends.

British-Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman died on the vessel alongside French submersible pilot Paul-Henri Nargeolet, chief executive of OceanGate Expeditions Stockton Rush, and British billionaire and pilot Hamish Harding.

Shahzada Dawood, 48, was the vice-chairman of Pakistani conglomerate Engro Corporation, and a long-time adviser to the King’s charity, Prince’s Trust International, with a focus on its work in Pakistan.

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He lived in Surbiton, south-west London, with his son, wife Christine and daughter Alina, according to the Telegraph.

Shahzada previously spoke at both the United Nations and Oxford Union.

The Dawood family released a statement on Thursday night, mourning the loss of the father and son.

“Please continue to keep the departed souls of our family in your prayers during this difficult period of mourning.

The family statement said they are truly grateful to those involved in the rescue operations and their “untiring efforts” brought strength to the family.

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The statement said: “We are also indebted to our friends, family, colleagues and well-wishers from all over the world who have stood by us during our hour of need.

“We extend our heartfelt condolences to the families of the other passengers onboard the Titan submersible.”

Suleman was described as a “big fan of science fiction literature and learning new things”, with an interest in Rubik’s Cubes and playing volleyball.

Mr Dawood became a director of the Dawood Hercules Corporation in 1996, and served as vice chairman between 2018 to 2021, according to his LinkedIn profile.

The company is an investment holding platform, of which Engro Corporation is a subsidiary.

Alongside his work in business, he was a supporter of the British Asian Trust, an organisation and a trustee of the Seti Institute.

Shahzada’s father, Hussain Dawood, was a founding patron of Prince’s Trust International, according to the charity.

The chief executive and founder of OceanGate Expeditions, Stockton Rush originally trained as a pilot, becoming the youngest jet transport-rated pilot in the world aged 19 in 1981, according to his profile on the OceanGate website.

He graduated from Princeton with a degree in aerospace engineering in 1984, the profile says.

Mr Rush was described as “highly professional” alongside pilot Paul-Henri Nargeolet by a businessman who Mr Rush led on a previous visit to the Titanic wreck.

OceanGate said in a statement that the men were “true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion of exploring and protecting the world’s oceans”.

A former commander who served in the French navy for 25 years, Mr Nargeolet, 77, was in the first human expedition to visit the ship in 1987, according to the Telegraph.

His family released a statement after his death, saying he will be remembered as “one of the greatest deep-sea explorers in modern history”.

Hamish Harding, the billionaire pilot and chair of Action Aviation, a sales and operations company which manages private jet sales, shared on his Instagram account that he joined the OceanGate expedition as a “mission specialist”.

In a short statement, his family said: “He was one of a kind and we adored him.

“He was a passionate explorer – whatever the terrain – who lived his life for his family, his business and for the next adventure.

“What he achieved in his lifetime was truly remarkable and if we can take any small consolation from this tragedy, it’s that we lost him doing what he loved.”

Mr Harding holds several Guinness world records, including the fastest circumnavigation of the Earth via the North and South Poles by an aircraft, in 46 hours, 40 minutes and 22 seconds.