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Oh, c'mon. All joking aside, there will be plenty of wild speculation. Let's apply Occam's Razor here and say that most likely, he probably crashed somewhere. He took off from a private airstrip unannounced. No one knew where he was going or even exactly when he left. He could be just about anywhere -- most likely on the ground in pieces.

Colonel Sandurz: Sir, do you think we're being too literal?
Dark Helmet: No you fool, we're following orders. We were told to comb the desert so we're combing it.

On the other hand, we can assume that his aircraft had a very respectable two-way radio. Whatever the misfortune was, it must have been fast enough that he was not able to send any kind of message. Well, yes, that assumes that there was no significant obstruction and there was anyone listening - neither of which can be guaranteed in a remote area - but it seems most likely that disaster struck fast.

Light aircraft parachutes have been around for some time now, and emergency beacons are practically a throw-away item. At this point in the light aircraft/experimental aircraft game, fatal crashes involving the ground (as opposed to buildings, mountains, seagulls, etc) should be relatively rare and rescuers should never be stumped.

Yes, I most definitely hope Steve Fossett is safe, but whether he is safe or not, I think that given the current state of technology, it would be good if questions were being asked as to why we don't even know. Are the parachutes so overpriced or unavailable that even someone like Mr. Fossett could not afford one? Are the laws on transmitters so onerous that only idiots would fly with a distress beacon of adequate power?

(Yes, people should be entitled to take whatever risks they like with their own lives, provided they understand what those are, but implicit in the concept of entitlement is that it is practical and lawful to mitigate those risks as much as possible when doing exactly the same thing. Otherwise, it is not the risk that has the entitlement, it's the activity. The risk is mandatory.)

And that made for one of the greatest newspaper headlines ever!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Wrong_Way_Corri gan.jpg [wikipedia.org]

Nevada is not a giant dry lake bed.

As someone who has traversed just a tiny bit of the variety of off-highway terrain Nevada/Arizona/Utah/East California has to offer, I find it doubtful he could put it down safely. If he went due north, then it doesn't get any easier to land it.

Let's imagine for a minute he gets insanely lucky and lands without killing himself. He's exposed to some of the hottest, driest weather in the US. How much drinking water is in single-engine plane? How much water could he carry if he were crazy enough to consider walking out?

Thank you. I also encourage people to think hard about which is really the more interesting and challenging accomplishment.

His biggest mistake: not filing that flight plan. Huge *huge* fuckup.

Quoted for truth. Private pilots, for the love of your friends and relatives, PLEASE file a flight plan whenever and wherever you fly. It's fucking hard to find a crash site if you don't know where to look and have to guess based on the aircraft's range. It's also a major waste of rescue time and resources, and you have an excellent chance of dying from exposure or injuries before you're found.

IOW, just crash the damn airplane into a cornfield somewhere if you want to commit suicide. Leave a note first.

ITYM "Citabria" (airbatic backwards). You can use them for just buzzing around; they're about the same speed as a Piper Cub and people do make (short) trips in those.

Sorry to nitpick, but it's not a Citaborea, it's a Citabria. It's "airbatic" spelt backwards, not "aerobatic".

And I _very_ much doubt your claim that Steve Fossett is inexperienced in Aerobatics. On the contrary, 5 minutes browsing his biography will convince you that this man's aeronautical experience is immensely broad. It's inconceivable that someone with his tremendous breadth of flying experience and appetite for adventure never bothered to train in aerobatics.

Just consider the number of experimental/prototype/one-of-a-kind planes he has test flown and then set records in. You don't test-fly these things without a substantial background in aerobatics.

And I doubt that his intent for the Citabria flight involved aerobatics. Despite the name, those planes are barely capable of aerobatics at all. A Citabria is about the last choice someone of Steve's wealth and experience is likely to choose for aerobatics. Much more likely, he chose to fly a Citarbria because of the things it's _good_ for: Slow, low, relaxed, sightseeing flight, short-field takeoff and landing, etc.

(PS I'm speaking as an aerobatic pilot myself, and also a former Citabria owner).