Round-the-world flying adventurer Steve Fossett may have faked his own death, investigators have claimed.
By Chris Irvine
Last Updated: 5:37PM BST 28 Jul 2008
Steve Fossett went missing last September when his final flight in a light plane over the Nevada desert went missing
Steve Fossett's disappearence last September sparked the biggest search in American history
Fossett, a friend of Virgin boss Richard Branson, and the first man to fly non-stop round the earth in a hot air balloon, went missing last September when his final flight in a light plane over the Nevada desert went missing.
However, Lieutenant Colonel Cynthia Ryan of the US Civil Air Patrol has said Fossett, whose body or plane was never found, could still be alive.
She said: "I've been doing this search and rescue for 14 years. Fossett should have been found.
"It's not like we didn't have our eyes open. We found six other planes while we were looking for him. We're pretty good at what we do."
Fossett's disappearance sparked the biggest search in American history, with the Civil Air Patrol's Black Hawks, fitted with infra-red technology, joined by over 30 private planes and internet experts scanning the Nevada desert looking for clues.
Lt Col Ryan believes Fossett may have faked his own death due to personal problems or fears about his business dealings.
There are also a number of anomalies that question whether Fossett's plane ever crashed.
Only one witness, a pilot at hotel magnate Barron Hilton's flying ranch near Reno, claims to have seen him take off that day.
That witness claims Fossett asked him to prepare the plane for take off, even though he had never allowed anyone else to do this before.
Fossett also apparently claimed he was going to scout for locations for a land speed record attempt, but he supposedly took off with no emergency equipment.
The choice of plane was also a baffling one - a Bellanca Citabria Super Decathlon, which, according to risk assessor Robert Davis said was constructed from a steel and wood frame, but actually covered in fabric, making it easy to dismantle.
Davis conducted an eight-month investigation for insurers Lloyd's of London, said to face a £25 million payout on Fossett's death.
He said: "What I've strived to find out is what happened to this man in the run-up to his disappearance, why did he disappear?
"I spoke to reporters who were on the scene, people who were helping out with the search efforts, anyone whom I thought could shed some light on this.
"I discovered that there is absolutely no proof that Steve Fossett is actually dead. I'm not a conspiracy theorist, I'm a man who deals in facts, and I don't really care if he is alive or dead, it make no difference to me.
"What I am interested in is the truth - and a proper criminal investigation of this man's disappearance was never undertaken by law enforcement or officials in the state of Nevada."
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If Steve Fosset is alive, then I say bully for him! Sorry that he felt he had to go out that way, especially after a lifetime of derring do, great success, and world records in many different areas. It is an unkind America in which he found himself, if indeed a man of his wealth and stature had to fake his own death to lead a better life. And it is certainly indicative of an unkind America if indeed there is not even a whit of truth to this potentially slanderous article. Kick 'em while their down, or if that won't do, then wait until they're dead and they really cannot kick back.
Let him die, or live in peace somewhere off the coast of nowhere under an assumed name and ID. What did the man ever do wrong, anyway? Hell, he did nothing but deserve my admiration as a brave sailor, flyer, and balloonist, who refused to simply sit back and enjoy his great wealth. Instead he used it to go where no man had gone before. Bravery. Something too few of our leaders have shown for quite some time.
From the Sailing Online Newsletter Scuttlebutt:
WIDOW DISMISSES FAKED DEATH CLAIMS
A lawyer for Peggy Fossett, widow of the aviation adventurer Steve
Fossett, has dismissed claims he may have faked his own death. Michael
LoVallo disputed suggestions from investigators and insurance assessors
that the record-setting pilot and balloonist, a friend of Virgin boss
Sir Richard Branson, could still be alive after his mysterious
disappearance in the Nevada desert 10 months ago.
Mrs. Fossett petitioned a Chicago court to have her husband declared
dead. Her request was granted in February and her husband's estate of
more than $10 million was awarded to her. "The remarks (that Fossett
could still be alive) were in disregard of the fact, many facts," Mr
LoVallo told The Daily Telegraph.
Fossett, 63, the first man to fly non-stop round the earth in a hot air
balloon, went missing last September after taking off from a remote
Nevada airstrip on a short trip to inspect a site for possible use in a
land speed record attempt. He never returned. His disappearance sparked
the most intensive hunt for a missing aircraft in US history, involving
Civil Air Patrol's Black Hawks, fitted with infra-red technology, as
well as 30 private planes and a global internet effort led by Amazon.com
and Google. Mrs. Fossett contributed over $1 million to the efforts, her
lawyers have said. Neither Fossett's body nor the plane's wreckage were
ever located.
But Lieutenant Colonel Cynthia Ryan, of the US Civil Air Patrol, who
briefed the media during the search, has said the adventurer's body
"should have been found", given the extensive search efforts, suggesting
he could still be alive. "It's not like we didn't have our eyes open. We
found six other planes while we were looking for him. We're pretty good
at what we do." Lt Col Ryan said she believed Fossett may have faked his
own death due to personal problems or fears about his business dealings.
Fossett made millions trading futures and options on Chicago exchanges.
Risk assessor Robert Davis, who conducted an eight-month investigation
for insurers Lloyd's of London, said he had "discovered that there is
absolutely no proof that Steve Fossett is actually dead". Lloyd's is
said to face a £25 million (approximately US$50 million) payout on
Fossett's death. -- Catherine Elsworth, The Telegraph, UK, full story:
http://xrl.us/ok3po
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