American adventurer Steve Fossett is searching for a safe landing site, after becoming the first person to fly solo around the world in a balloon.
The 58-year-old Chicago millionaire made aviation history Tuesday when his “Spirit of Freedom” balloon crossed the 117th line of longitude, the point at which he began his journey from Australia June 18. Mr. Fossett’s mission control director says he expects the balloon to land later Wednesday in Western Australia.
The American adventurer expressed jubilation as he talked to his mission control crew after completing his trek across the globe. He then announced plans for his next adventure, to fly a glider into the stratosphere, saying his first attempt will be later this month.
Mr. Fossett’s balloon flight was his sixth attempt at circling the globe. He broke his own solo distance record Sunday, when he approached the 23,000 kilometer mark. He set the previous record in 1998 before crashing into the Coral Sea, off Australia’s northeast coast.
The Swiss-English team of Bertrand Picard and Brian Jones, who successfully completed a balloon flight around the world in 1999, called Mr. Fossett to congratulate him in his final hours of accomplishing his dream.
Mr. Fossett nearly died several times during his previous attempts, including a crash landing in Russia in 1997. (voa)
