Aircraft

Federal aviation safety investigators were dispatched today to examine a newly-discovered crash site possibly linked to Steve Fossett, a pilot and adventurer missing for more than a year and presumed dead.

Wreckage located “in the vicinity” of Mammoth Lakes, California, near where a hiker found Fossett’s personal effects, is believed to be from the crashed Bellanca aircraft piloted by Fossett when he vanished on 3 September 2007, the US National Transportation Safety Board announced today.

A hiker earlier this week found a weathered sweatshirt and identification cards printed with Fossett’s name. 

An airborne search party dispatched to the scene found wreckage located nearby in a wooded, mountainous area, and at an elevation of about 10,000ft above sea level. The area is roughly 65mi from the Fossett’s departure point in Yerington, Nevada.

Fossett has been presumed dead since January.

AirSpace discussions 

• Did Steve Fossett fake his own death?
• Steve Fossett lost in American airspace
• Hikers find Fossett belongings