In 2001, The Guardian published an article, "The man who fell to earth," detailing how the body of a young Pakistani man, Mohammed Ayaz, was seen falling from the underbelly of an airplane to land in a parking lot of a chain DIY home improvement store, several feet away from a major highway in London.

In 2002, writer Amitava Kumar, published a brief essay, "Flight," in his essay collection Bombay, London, New York in which he reflects upon the story of Ayaz, and the realities of escape, flight, and falling for the South Asian itinerant worker.

In 2007, Kate Pullinger and  Chris Joseph launched the "Flight Paths" blog with the intention of creating a "networked novel." Through their blog they worked through their writing process and solicited feedback and contributions with others. In 2009, they relaunched the site with an electronic story "Flight Paths," which narrates the story of the migrant Yacub, his attempt to enter the UK through the undercarriage of an airplane, and an Englishwoman, Harriet, whose life intersects with Yacub when his body lands on her car.

Screenshot of "Flight Paths" electronic novel introductory page, with links to different chapters, and to the Flight Paths Universe

Screenshot from Chapter 2 of "Flight Paths," "Yacub at the Airport"

Screenshot from Chapter 4 of "Flight Paths," "Dark Mass"

The story of Yacub and Harriet, though fascinating in itself, is only one part of the Flight Paths Universe, as Pullinger and Joseph term it, in which other contributors are invited to submit and share their own additions to this network of narrative constructed through various media (digital video, photographs, poems, short stories, websites, etc.)

Screen Shot of front page to the Fight Paths Universe

Screenshot with sample past contributions to the Flight Paths Universe