Steve Fossett missing - Final NTSB Report
 

Steve Fossett missing and being searched for after taking off in a single engine.

Nevada.

TO from Hilton Ranch last night 6 pm apprx.

Acrobatic plane. No parachute.

cnn
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Last seen taking off from Nevada in a single-engine Citabra Super Decathlon last night, according to reports from the US

Now they're saying noon yesterday.

Civil Airpatrol.


James Stephen Fossett (born April 22, 1944, in Jackson, Tennessee) is an American aviator and adventurer known for his appetite to set world records. Fossett, who made his fortune in the American financial services industry, is best known for his five world record non-stop circumnavigations of the Earth: as a long-distance solo balloonist, as a sailor, and as a solo airplane pilot. Fossett has set 116 records in five different sports, 76 of which still stand.[1]

Fossett grew up in Garden Grove, California. In 1966 he graduated from Stanford University with a BA. In 1968 he graduated with a MBA from The Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri and today is on the Board of Trustees. Fossett is a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and The Explorers Club........
wiki
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Several search teams involved 'working on some leads', but at this stage no flight plan is believed to have been filed

(CNN) -- World aviation record-holder Steve Fossett is missing and a massive search is under way in western Nevada, a Nevada aviation spokeswoman said Tuesday.

Fossett took off from a private air strip known as Flying M Ranch, 30 miles south of Yerington, Nevada, at about 6 p.m. local time Monday, with enough fuel for four to five hours of flight, according to the Civil Air Patrol.

Civil Air Patrol Maj. Cynthia S. Ryan said authorities are searching hundreds of miles of rugged terrain in western Nevada. They also are analyzing information from radar intelligence to try to track Fossett.

Six search aircraft with three-man crews are taking part in the search, and high winds are posing problems, she said. Aircraft from the Naval Air Station Fallon, in Fallon, Nevada, and the California Highway Patrol also are aiding the search......

officials say he took off at 8.45am from the private airstrip. aircraft now said to be a Bellanca, carrying an estimated 4-5hrs of fuel

I pray they find him soon. He is one great guy.

Ditto, Saman. Search got under way 6pm local time yesterday ...

Even made French TV news this evening. Monitoring this frequency.

No ELT info? At least that might indicate a soft landing - hopefully.

Longer story on Fossett's achievements and disappearance
 

Doesn't he wear one of those expensive Breitling watches with the emergency transmitter built in ?. He certainly had one during his RTW flights.

Hope he is ok though.

:(

Fossett was apparently scouting for dry lake beds for a forthcoming project (land-speed record bid). Flight conditions described as 'optimal' –*light winds, vis 10miles.
Winds today much stronger, and not helping those searching

Leezyjet, think the Breitling was lent to him by Branson for the RTW, and was auctioned off for charity later. No transmissions of any sort being picked up by search teams, sadly

NS

i live in reno...maybe 100 miles from the start of the search area.

to the west are some of the highest mountains in the 48 states, including mount whitney, tallest peak in the 48.

to the east is desert...large flat areas, little water, though a few lakes that might be interesting...it is also near the nevada nuclear test site, sort of close to other interesting places like area 51...but don't think that the saucers got him...

I do hope he is found safely...maybe with a smile on his face

;-0

j

Come on Steve, 'phone home. You're needed.

hope he is found - he is a great ambasador for the flying world!

A big problem there for Steve is that the daytime temperatures are in the high 80's and there is not going to be any shelter unless he can use the aircraft or broken parts of it to make a shelter. He is unlikely to have any substantial quantity of water with him either.

Even if a controlled forced landing did not activate the ELT, he could manually switch it on assuming he is not injured.

Steve Fossett missing
 

Was on the 10 pm news tonight....
UV

little more info
http://www.bakersfield.com/119/story/228012.html

May he RIP...

http://www.avweb.com/newspics/stevefossett_150x220.jpg

Searchers are combing an area of western Nevada looking for adventurer Steve Fossett, who was reported missing in his Citabria Super Decathlon early this morning. The Nevada Record-Courier is reporting that Fossett left the Hilton Ranch in the Smith Valley in the aircraft Monday evening. It's not known where he was heading.

Nevada Civil Air Patrol spokeswoman Maj. Cynthia Ryan said three crews were launched early today and more will be dispatched through the day. A check of neighboring airports apparently came up empty. The aircraft Fossett was seen taking off in is blue and white and the terrain in the area of the Hilton ranch is rugged and sparsely populated. Fossett is best known for his around-the-world flight in a balloon and another unrefueled flight in a single-engine jet aircraft. He was in Nevada recently preparing for a land-speed record attempt in a jet-powered car on the Bonneville Flats but it's not known why he was at the Hilton Ranch.

Plane who is missing:

http://www.aero-news.net/images/cont...lane-0907a.jpg

Bit early to RIP him. Worrying though

Roberts975
 

Never flown an "N" reg aircraft is it a standard FAA policy that all "N" reg aircraft have to have an ELT? or are we just assuming he had one with him?
Sorry guys n gals for being a bit naive here

Hope they find him, without a known destination though there is a massive area of Nevada to search:(

I think it is ! All the a/c I flew in Canada has an ELT. I was surprised on returning to the UK to find the opposite, i.e. most a/c don't have an ELT ! That said, I was once involved in a SAR whilst paradropping as LATCC called to see if I could see a downed a/c as they were picking up an ELT. I tuned into 121.5 - kinda eerie blip blip noise and then I spotted smoke ! Turned out to be a bonfire !! Think the source was eventaully traced to a hangered a/c.

Anyways, back to thread. Hope Steve is found safe and well. Firts thing that went through my mind was if he had crashed surely they would have picked up an ELT, unless of course it was destroyed/malfunctioned.
CG.

I don't believe that it's mandatory to carry an ELT on N reg a/c... I've certainly flown without them... one would imagine though that any a/c operating over the sort of terrain that this a/c was operating over would be carrying one... of course if they're not mandatory there's no guarantee that it is regularly maintained.. Let's hope he returns promptly back to friends and family with another good story to relate...

It is a Federal Aviation Regulation, namely 14 CFR 91.207
(aka FAR 91.207). Findable on the WWW.

PBL

OOps...

Apologies for not knowing that and we'll get one ftted.. :uhoh: does the FAA read this ?

Probably not - I'll forward your note for you right away :}

PBL

A true legend in aviation, let's hope the outcome is positive.

Where are the Bonnaville Flats ?

Let's hope that he is indeed found safe and well.

I can't help saying that anyone who flies a single-engined aircraft without a flight plan over the desert in Utah must be a complete MORMON! :p

Sorry.

SD

In the not too distant past, many business jets and most jet airliners did not require an ELT.
Not anymore.
If one were to be brave enough to fly their light aircraft without a functioning and properly maintained ELT, certification action starts with a suspension of 180 days.
Get caught once again...certificate revocation.
Better have one Bubba, otherwise you is in a heap o' trouble.:ooh:

A good friend of mine is deputy commander of the Civil Air Patrol in California, and when an ELT is reported, a search can be organized in thirty minutes, maximum forty five.
The CAP is very serious about finding lost/downed aircraft, and will keep looking until it is found.
They are very professional at their work.

My tax dollars at work....productively, for a change.:rolleyes:

Or d) The landing was soft enough not to activate the ELT but the pilot was incapacitated.

Have heard that a large number of the ELTs dont go off on impact and end up having to manually activated.

J.

Presumably an ELT would have a very short range in that sort of terrain, especially if deep down in a narrow valley.

I know that terrain pretty well, and it's pretty open. You are right that if the ELT can't be picked up, that indicates either that it is/was defective, or that the craft is sitting in some ravine somewhere. It surprises me greatly that he hasn't been found yet, given (as 411A says) the dedication and expertise of the California CAP (who I presume would be called for such a search).

PBL

PBL

Any possibility of listening for his phone? I know he's out of coverage but perhaps flying a portable base station over the area would be better than using eyes alone?

Seems a shame that Uncle Richard puts so much staunch in the ads from Breitling about their watch.
We all know the output is so low that any aircraft looking for a Breitling 121.5 signal needs to be right on top of you to locate you.
Of course if it happens, that's great.
However, not really likely. Survival comes from proper kit and proper training.
Hope Steve's going to be OK
Suspect that Breitling's ads are about to be shown for the smokescreen they really are.
Breitling 121.5 watch is a gimmick bought by the rich and vulnerable.