Steve Fossett missing - Final NTSB Report

[mm_flynn]

Inconclusive but with a lot of important facts

1. It was a severe clear day - No clouds, 60 miles viz (so CFIT in IMC is not a real possibility
2. It was way above standard and the POH says 370 fpm is the best the aircraft would do at the accident site.
3. There is a radar track at the right time and place that has no irregularity worth commenting upon (other than the loss of Mode C).
4. The debris trail and impact signatures seem consistent with CFIT .
5. [Opinion]the two points above are not consistent with a medical emergency.
6. There was 35 knots (from memory) of wind across the mountain.
7. The NTSB commissioned a meteorological analysis that indicated downdrafts in excess of the aircraft's maximum climb rate would have been expected at the crash location.
8. PIREPS indicate very smooth air interrupted by quite bumpy periods.

No conclusion is reached, but inadvertent IMC or medical issues seem remarkably unlikely to have anything to do with this accident.