Steve Fossett's airplane found
Wreckage spotted near Mammoth Lakes is confirmed by ground crews as belonging to the missing adventurer. They also found what might be some of his remains.
MAMMOTH LAKES — Authorities confirmed today that search-and-rescue crews had found the plane of missing adventurer Steve Fossett, along with what might be some of his remains.
Madera County Sheriff John Anderson said crews flying overhead Wednesday evening spotted what they thought was the wreckage in a mountainous area just east of the Minarets, a series of craggy peaks in the Sierra Nevada. (Officials initially said the wreckage was found west of the Minarets.)
"They went in and they did locate the aircraft, which we have now confirmed is the one that Steve Fossett was flying when it disappeared last Labor Day," Anderson said.
Search crews went in after they received global positioning system coordinates from the aircraft, and officials were able to reach the wreckage and confirm around 11 p.m. that it was Fossett's plane. The identification number of Fossett's plane matched the number on the wreckage, he said.
At an afternoon briefing, Mark V. Rosenker, acting chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, said searchers had also discovered what appeared to be some remains, which were being analyzed by forensic scientists at a local coroner's office.
The wreckage was spread out; the engine was found about 300 feet away from the fuselage and the wings.
"It appeared to me, just looking at the pictures, it was a head-on crash into the side of the mountain, into a rock," Anderson said. "The plane moved in an upward direction for 100 feet or so, and disintegrated."
No belongings or human remains were found in the wreckage, Anderson said. He saw photographs of the plane, and "the crash looked to be so severe that I doubt if someone would have walked away from it."
The wreckage was found about a quarter-mile from where the ID cards were found. Officials suspect an animal may have carried the items away.
"What it means is that we know for sure," Anderson said. "There were questions yesterday that perhaps someone threw the cards or money out the window. Now we know the plane was there, the plane crashed, and we probably have a pretty good indication that Steve Fossett's remains are still up in the mountains somewhere."
Five investigators from the NTSB arrived this morning from Washington, D.C., and were preparing to visit the wreckage. Rosenker said investigators had reviewed preliminary information and photographs from the scene.
