Steve Fossett | |
|---|---|
 Fossett in September 2002 | |
| Born | James Stephen Fossett April 22, 1944 Jackson, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Died | September 3, 2007 (aged 63) |
| Cause of death | Plane crash |
| Alma mater | Washington University in St. Louis (MBA) Stanford University (BA) Garden Grove High School |
| Known for | setting a large number of world records as an adventurer, sailor and aviator |
| Spouse | Peggy Viehland |
James Stephen Fossett (April 22, 1944 – September 3, 2007) was an American businessman and a record-setting aviator, sailor, and adventurer. He was the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon and in a fixed-wing aircraft. He made his fortune in the financial services industry and held world records for five nonstop circumnavigations of the Earth: as a long-distance solo balloonist, as a sailor, and as a solo flight fixed-wing aircraft pilot.
A fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and the Explorers Club, Fossett set more than one hundred records[verification needed] in five different sports, sixty of which still stood at the time of his death. He broke three of the seven absolute world records for fixed-wing aircraft recognized by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale, all in his Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer.[1] In 2002, he was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Aero Club of the UK,[2] and was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 2007.
Fossett disappeared on September 3, 2007, while flying a light aircraft over the Great Basin Desert, between Nevada and California. Fossett's plane was discovered wrecked in 2008.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
RecordsFAIwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Wilson, Sam; agencies (June 6, 2007). "Profile: Steve Fossett". Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved September 7, 2007.