The Sept. 2007 airplane crash that killed adventurist and financial wizard Steve Fossett was caused by downdrafts in mountainous terrain, according to a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation.
In its official accident report, the NTSB found that Fossett’s plane, a Bellanca 8KCAB-180 (N240R), crashed into the mountains near Mammoth Lakes, California after encountering “downdrafts that exceeded the climb capability of the airplane.”
Flying alone, Fossett took off on Sept. 3, 2007 from the Flying M Ranch, a private airport near Yerington, Nevada, on a “local, personal flight,” but failed to return. A month-long search by the Civil Air Patrol, state and county authorities, and friends, produced no trace of Fossett or his aircraft.
Over a year later – on October 7, 2008 – a hiker found some of Fossett’s personal effects. The wreckage of the plane was found about half-a-mile away at an elevation of about 10,000 feet.
Best known as the first person to fly around the globe alone nonstop in a balloon, Fossett made a fortune in the financial services industry. Along with his famous balloon trip, Fossett circumnavigated the globe alone five times in boats and airplanes.
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