Millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett has been reported missing in Nevada, and a search is underway. It’s unclear what the record-setting pilot was up to, but he has been spending time in that part of the country attempting both record-setting glider flights and prepping for an attempt at the absolute land speed record of 763 mph. He was expected to begin testing at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah in September, driving a jet-powered vehicle.
The Associated Press is reporting that Fossett had taken off from a private airstrip at the Flying M Ranch, about 70 miles southeast of Reno. The ranch is owned by hotel magnate Barron Hilton, a longtime friend of Fossett’s. Fosssett was reportedly piloting a single-engine aircraft, and it doesn’t appear that he was attempting any records at the time of the
flight.
Fossett is the holder of 115 world records or world firsts, and is famed for his around-the-world balloon record attempts, his sailing exploits, and his GlobalFlyer flight, in which he flew a Burt Rutan-designed, Virgin Atlantic-sponsored single-engine jet aircraft solo around the world without stopping or refueling in 67 hours in 2005.
Stand by here for updates as they become available.
—Eric Adams
Photo: Mary Frances Howard