Viral pilot detained for unauthorized Antarctica visit had “complications” mid-flight
Ethan Guo, the viral pilot who was detained following an unauthorized flight to Antarctica, apparently suffered “complications” in the air that led him to land there.
If you’ve opened up TikTok or Instagram over the past six months, chances are that you’ve come across Ethan Guo. The 19-year-old has been attempting to become the youngest person to fly solo across all seven continents, while also trying to raise $1 million for cancer charities.
Guo, who is travelling in a Cesena C182, has ticked off quite a few places already, but at the end of June, ran into some trouble. The TikToker was detained by Chilean officialsafter he performed an unauthorized landing in Chilean Antarctic territory.
According to reports, the 19-year-old had informed air traffic control that his flight plan was for a flight around Punta Arenas. However, he deviated from that, landing at Teniente Marsh Airfield.
A 19-year-old pilot has been detained in Chile after altering his flight plan and making an unauthorized solo flight to AntarcticaEthan Guo is trying to fly to all 7 continents to raise $1M for cancer researchpic.twitter.com/zQxEmCoEpl
Ethan Guo lawyer addresses detainment after unauthorized flight
Prosecutor Cristián Crisosto said that Guo had “seriously endangered the safety of air traffic to Antarctica and the Magallanes Region,” which is the reason for the charge.
According to the pilot’s lawyer, Karina Ulloa, he suffered “complications” mid-flight, which prompted him to land at Teniente Marsh Airfield.
“While already in the air, he began to experience a series of complications,” she toldCNN. The lawyer also claimed Guo was “conducting an exploratory flight to see if he could follow this route or not.”
An X account in Guo’s name has also been created, claiming to be the pilot. “I’m alive guys, I’ll have a update soon,” itposted.
While the account has a verification tick, there is no confirmation that Guo is actually behind it. The account does have an image of his plane in Antarctica as its header, which had not been released previously.
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The 19-year-old is still subject to check-ins with Chilean officials as he has not been permitted to leave the country yet.
He is set for a hearing on July 11 to determine his fate.
