Qatar Duty Free and IWC Schaffhausen will host a special world premiere event with seven-time Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton at Hamad International Airport this weekend.

Taking place on the same weekend as the Qatar Grand Prix, where Hamilton will compete, the event will feature the first ever screening of a new film showing British driver receiving astronaut flight training with the Polaris Program, for commercial human spaceflight missions.

The experience saw Hamilton join Polaris Program Philanthropy Director & Instructor Pilot John ‘Slick’ Baum to undergo the same training use to prepare crews on the Inspiration 4 and Polaris Dawn commercial space missions. Attendees will see footage of Hamilton undertaking manoeuvres in an L-39 Albatross jet and experiencing complete weightlessness during the experience.

Students from the Dibia Dream social STEM education programmes were also on-hand for the training as part of the companies’ mission to show young people that “you can become anything you want in life – a racing driver, a pilot or even an astronaut.”

Baum said: “We put Lewis Hamilton through the same training we used to prepare the Inspiration 4 and Polaris Dawn crews for their missions. He showed truly impressive skills at the controls of the jet and proved that he can pilot any machine, whether it is a powerful race car or a jet. With the astronaut flight training for Lewis Hamilton, we underscore the Polaris Program’s commitment to making space exploration accessible to more people.”

Throughout the filming Hamilton, who has been an IWC Brand Ambassador for more than 10 years, wore a specially-designed race suit, with a dedicated space mission patch and his 44 starting number. He also wore the Pilot’s Watch Performance Chronograph 41 Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One™ Team. The suit will be exhibited at the event and will be worn at the weekend’s Grand Prix.

After the film, guests at the world premiere will hear from Hamilton himself, discussing the experience and his other adventures as an ambassador for the brand.