Ethan Guo (C172 guy flying to all 7 continents to raise money for St. Jude) detained by Chilean authorities for unauthorized flight to Antartica

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BirthdayCute5478@reddit

This will probably make him get more attention

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MotivatedsellerCT@reddit

I’m sure that’s the goal. and to be honest good for him. I’m sure he will raise money for his charity this way

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drain-angel@reddit

Someone's self-indulgent ego trip & flying like a jackass isn't acceptable even if he's hiding behind the cause of fundraising for charity.

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Interanal_Exam@reddit

Until taxpayers somewhere have to shell out a couple million bucks to find/recover his sorry, sodden ass in the south pacific.

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🙄 have you tried being happy he went out for good intent? lots of us have lost someone to cancer . he's a hero, a young adventurer iin an age where most teens and adults complain about the state of the world from a cell phone and the rich hoard money

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tekashii_6ix9ine@reddit

U need to hang

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SpaceTortuga@reddit

south pacific in winter? good luck trying to find anything there

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Standard-Movie-1121@reddit

He has enough money to afford a plane take lawyers, instead of doing what he wants to do, breaking the law and getting other people to pay, he could've donated himself

If you think this will add publicity to his charity for more funds, it won't. It's an entitled teenage brat and you can't be that vapid, surely.

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LOLinDark@reddit

Do something stupid for charity - just what we want to communicate to teenagers 🙃

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CauliflowerDeep129@reddit

This attention got him 90 in jail, and in Antártica

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

source?

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holein3@reddit

It's not a 90 day sentence, it's a 90 day investigation period. It's from the article I translated above.

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

I was about to say, I read that earlier and figured no way lol

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Emotional_Hat545@reddit

The money he used for this flight would have added up to a significant contribution. But another case of someone wanting to be seen

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

Goodbye future flying job that was basically in his hands by getting all of that time 🤦‍♀️

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Hemmschwelle@reddit

I doubt that this person will ever need to work for a living.

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SmugAlpaca@reddit

Strikes me as the kid who has two parents who do jobs you’ve never heard of but live in truly obscene wealth.

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itsCamaro@reddit

I mean you have to give the kid credit though. What he did is nothing short of impressive, especially at 17.

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Extension_Abroad6713@reddit

Not really. If I had parents who’d fund any expedition I wanted to do in the name of “cancer research” (which is total bs because I’m sure he’s spent that much if not more on this whole adventure before these legal issues) I would’ve done all kinds of things as a teenager. How totally selfish of him to think he can just do whatever since mommy and daddy have the money.

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AssociationUseful401@reddit

lol what did you do at 17 instead? There a lot of things you can do without money, but I’m sure you didn’t do much

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ariel4050@reddit

Yes I’m sure you would have been so amazing if your parents supported you that you would have found a cure for cancer, solved world hunger, and ended all wars…because the only reason you’re not where you want to be is because of other people…

Get some therapy for your narcissism.

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Extension_Abroad6713@reddit

How about you worry about why you’re defending the wealthy? Kinda messed up you’re defending some kid who could literally buy your life if they wanted to. It’s far from narcissism to say I would’ve done a lot more had I had wealthy parents to just throw money at me. I’m not where I want to be because of money. Not because of other people. I never said I would cure cancer or end world hunger, or that the only thing stopping me is other people. The same goes for like 90% of the rest of the world. How about you go touch grass instead of telling me I need therapy for narcissism.

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Standard-Movie-1121@reddit

He's 19 and it's definitely nothing short of impressive, it's absolutely stupid

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

fair but I mean who wouldn’t want to do this for a living when he has the hours, a great story and experience when it’s handed to you

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Standard-Movie-1121@reddit

You really think he was trying to be a pilot? This was an ego trip for an influencer

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

He has like 700 hours, he’s been in it

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Imaginary-Study5816@reddit

What happened to the links to the charity? They all seem taken down now

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drownedtears@reddit

Where does he poop?

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kzazcalz@reddit

I find this stunt so ignorant, egotistical, and disrespectful of the region. Antarctica is legally designated as a scientific preserve. I was there a year ago and getting permits was an involved process and we had to follow strict protocols and inspections of our boat. For example, to help stem the spread of bird flu (a major threat to the wildlife in the region) we had to clean our shoes in a special solution before and after leaving our vessel and we maintained distance from wildlife. I worry the attention he is garnering on Instagram will only encourage others to set foot in places for attention rather than a purpose that truly benefits the earth and humanity. I doubt few of his followers have educated themselves about this precious region as a result of his stupidity.

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FlyingShadow1@reddit

I can't believe people thought this guy was some amazing pilot. I was always wondering how hew was going to land at Antarctica.

Honestly all I saw was privileged pilot with his parent's money and some fake sob story about "working hard" on his media handles flying around the world.

The fact he thought it fit to attempt this in the winter says a lot about how far ahead he thinks in the future. Glad to see some snotty "influencer" get what he deserves.

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itsCamaro@reddit

How can you not respect a kid landing at Antartica at 17 for charity. Cmon now, what were you doing at 17?

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FlyingShadow1@reddit

Is that sarcasm? Where's the /s

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itsCamaro@reddit

Not even a little bit. There's a difference between snotty influencers and a kid with balls of steel who really attempted something. Talk vs do. Whatever his short-sighted thinking is, he certainly isn't putting up a "sob story" or snotty. Brave in vision, reckless in the end. But that's where history making stems from.

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FlyingShadow1@reddit

He is snotty.

He thinks he can do whatever he wants and ignores the rules because he's doing it for social media clout. He doesn't have balls of steel, he has hazardous attitudes. Macho attitudes

Clearly you have a warped view of reality. Doesn't surprise me because you think being a repo man is a "cool" job.

And for what it's worth, at 17 ~ 19 I was struggling to get by in a poverty striken family, working so I could pay for my dream. I didn't have mommy and daddy buy me an airplane and pay for all my training so I could go on stupid flight, market it as charity, and then pretend like I'm a hard working person that wants to give back.

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itsCamaro@reddit

How do you know what he's doing it for? Are you him? Maybe he had someone close to him who was affected by charity. Perspective matters. Yea, he violated the rules. But I think you're unwilling to admit that violating the rules is part of what makes some people great. Would love to see your reaction to a modern-day Lindbergh. That was way more reckless. The kid simply bent international aviation rules pursuing charity and doing something unique at a young age. He had nobody to hurt but himself. He's going to get in trouble for it and learn his lesson, but he set out to do something and did it. Not at least commending that - makes you elitist.

As far as the repo thing, I still think it is cool on the aviation-side of things for contract pilots. I changed my mind about automotive when considering your perspective. People who can afford a plane are not struggling though.

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ariel4050@reddit

I agree! People who downvoted this are just judgmental people who like to insult people behind a computer screen.

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bikeheart@reddit

Maybe he had someone close to him who was affected by charity.

This is exactly the kind of thing a low-parameter LLM would say.

How do you know what he's doing it for? Are you him? Maybe he had someone close to him who was affected by charity. Perspective matters. Yea, he violated the rules. But I think you're unwilling to admit that violating the rules is part of what makes some people great. Would love to see your reaction to a modern-day Lindbergh. That was way more reckless. The kid simply bent international aviation rules pursuing charity and doing something unique at a young age. He had nobody to hurt but himself. He's going to get in trouble for it and learn his lesson, but he set out to do something and did it. Not at least commending that - makes you elitist.

As far as the repo thing, I still think it is cool on the aviation-side of things for contract pilots. I changed my mind about automotive when considering your perspective. People who can afford a plane are not struggling though.

Actually, this whole comment does.

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flyingPurp1e@reddit

Elitist? Now that’s a stretch With his ADM..would you even begin saying the same thing about “simply breaking international rules” if the plane crashed?

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Independent_Luck_936@reddit

I just read this article about him saying he worked as a dishwasher when he was 15 to save up money. And said he is doing this for charity because a cousin died of cancer while he was planning all of this… so basically it didn’t really start with the intention of doing it for charity

abs-cbn news

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drain-angel@reddit

"History" HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA

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Positive_Gene_1927@reddit

Jealous!

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ToxicObeZe@reddit

19

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

He’s 19

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Kei_CL@reddit

When you're a spoiled brat like him that does something for charity (because it's easy for him) in social media basically you will never need to take a real job in your life. And this kind of controversy further fuels their social media accounts with new followers.

It might be for charity but in the end is just an investment to never need to work a real job.

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ariel4050@reddit

Gee someone’s a bitter old hag…

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ShallotMedical3490@reddit

Just another attention seeking scammer. Disgusting.

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WeekendOk6724@reddit

Kid’s an idiot. Judgement is kind of an important aspect of commanding an aircraft

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itsCamaro@reddit

He still flew to Antartica at 17 and you didn't

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

He’s 19. Idk why you’re commenting this everywhere. Violating airspace and putting yourself at risk is not a flex

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itsCamaro@reddit

Okay, 19. And it's because I think he really did something that pushed boundaries. Yes, it was reckless, but I think that's how people really make history. Charles Lindbergh comes to mind, flying on like zero sleep across the Atlantic.

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gabivrm@reddit

Lol

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CheezTips@reddit

19

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WeekendOk6724@reddit

Chuckle… nice car tho

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schmookeeg@reddit

Seems like his plan was to scam the Chileans and they're mad about it. I wonder if he tried it via a "unexpected weather, emergency landing plzkthx" if he'd be in slightly less hot water.

Black eye for us all nonetheless.

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holein3@reddit

They're trying that now:

On Sunday, his lawyer told reporters at a press conference after Guo was charged that the young pilot experienced “complications” while flying. “While already in the air, he began to experience a series of complications,” Karina Ulloa said, adding that Guo claims “that he was conducting an exploratory flight to see if he could follow this route or not.”

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carsnbikesnplanes@reddit

As stupid as it is to fly a piston single into Antarctica in the winter, I can’t lie I respect it. Especially the fact that he knew he would never get permission if asked, so he just went for it lol. True leeroy jenkins moment

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Interanal_Exam@reddit

You respect stupidity and no regard for others (SAR, etc.)?

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carsnbikesnplanes@reddit

I respect him having balls of fucking steel

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Standard-Movie-1121@reddit

No matter how much you lick his ass he's not gonna recognise you

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Senior_Method3206@reddit

Was amelia earhearts flight across the world stupid? Ofc its a risk, you are flying a plane across the earth.

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democracyisgoodtbh@reddit

Yes.

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thrfscowaway8610@reddit

The Douglas Corrigan de nos jours.

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canadian_stig@reddit

I don’t know if I respect it but damn I admire the adventure element behind it. Everyone here is being pretty salty though.

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Gandor@reddit

Dude has terrible ADM from what I’ve seen

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SmugAlpaca@reddit

Literal child flying an airplane solo in foreign countries. There are 1500+ turbine hour, US-trained pilots that shouldn't be flying in other countries.

I watched the most recent video on his YT, where he incredulously asks for a second opinion when the mechanic tells him he basically almost failed the engine and should have landed earlier. Kid's gonna get himself killed.

They won't, but best thing they could do for him is put him on a flight back to Miami.

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Standard-Movie-1121@reddit

He can pay for it, he has enough money

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thrfscowaway8610@reddit

There again, Amy Johnson had fewer than 100 hours TT when she flew from London to Australia in 1930. Her longest cross-country to that point had been 125 nm.

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Vihurah@reddit

I really have no clue how he even has the means to do this. He's not a Guido W. Flying on charter and he doesn't seem like a Matt Guthmiller with a fortune to run his expeditions. How his parents sleep at night is beyond me.

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

rich parents is the obvious answer

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Vihurah@reddit

That seems to track, im just surprised even deep pockets would be on board with something like this

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SmugAlpaca@reddit

Idk from just the first five mins of the video he reads as the child of rich rich parents to me.

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Rev-777@reddit

There are 1500+ turbine hour, US-trained pilots that shouldn't be flying in other countries.

Well ya, they don’t even have spin training 🇨🇦

/s for those that need it

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

holy fuck

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drain-angel@reddit

Zara Rutherford 2.0. Rich moron hiding behind PR teams and impressing the general public and justifying it with charity.

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BlitzenBenz@reddit

I agree. I do believe these rich people add in the "trying to raise money for charity" so peasants can't be too hard on them about their immense wealth and privilege. I mean how many 19 year olds can just decide to fly around the world. If they admitted they just did it for fun people would look at them in a much more negative light. It's not only the wealthy who use this as criminals sometimes do it also. I've always felt that the whole "charity card" is used by these people because it pretty much makes them immune to criticism.. if you say anything negative about whatever they're doing you look like the bad guy who wants to stop money going to starving kids or cancer patients.

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

who is Zara Rutherford for the uninitiated

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drain-angel@reddit

Same shit different plane. Used a PR team to spam articles everywhere about it

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theaircraftaviation@reddit

yo quick q, what's ADM

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PlayneLuver@reddit

Aeronautical decision making

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guynamedjames@reddit

I'm so confused by your profile pic compared to the content. Is this like choosing a female character in an RPG because you're going to spend 200 hours looking at their ass running around?

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aspz@reddit

What makes you think PlayneLuver is not the person in the photograph?

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Ruepic@reddit

Americans call it Aeronautical Decision Making, it’s also known as Pilot Decision Making. Some pilots who live under a rock and never leave the confines of their border will say “no one says that” but in reality, not everyone lives in the USA.

Some may call it just Decision Making.

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SteezyMacGeezy@reddit

Aeronautical Decision Making.

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Ruepic@reddit

I’ve only ever heard people us Pilot Decision Making

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mianosm@reddit

Chapter two of the PHAK (https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files/04_phak_ch2.pdf) is ADM.

You may want to educate those folks. :)

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Ruepic@reddit

I’m Canadian bro… lol https://tc.canada.ca/en/aviation/publications/pilot-decision-making-pdm-tp-13897

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DefundTheHOA_@reddit

No one says that

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Ruepic@reddit

https://tc.canada.ca/en/aviation/publications/pilot-decision-making-pdm-tp-13897

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mianosm@reddit

The second chapter of the PHAK (https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files/04_phak_ch2.pdf).

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sunfishtommy@reddit

What have you seen? I dont know who this guy is fyi.

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JohnathanMaravilla@reddit (OP)

Instagram YouTube

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sunfishtommy@reddit

Can someone summarize so i dont have to watch 1.5 hours of videos?

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s2soviet@reddit

Decides to take a 182 around the world by himself fresh off. Plane breaks, gets fixed, then he was held by authorities, then let go, deviates from flight plan, gets arrested by Chilean authorities.

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LSupplier@reddit

Wait he doesn’t hold any rating but his PPL!? What’re his hours at??

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

he has an IR. ~700 hours

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

following lol

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Veritech-1@reddit

I was flying over the Pacific and actually heard him declare an emergency with Anchorage center. He had to divert into Shimya. A military base. Because he didn't have enough fuel to make the trip. I am not sure if he intentionally planned to land in Shimya or if it was stronger than planned winds. I can't imagine a 182 has enough fuel to make the hop from Japan to Anchorage.

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VelitGames@reddit

What country even gives the authority to fly to Antarctica and how does one even obtain it? I imagine it's a neutral treaty territory, but some tourist businesses and obviously scientific researchers obviously get permission but from who? Does Chile run it?

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FlowerGeneral2576@reddit

He landed at a Chilean airport, in Chile-governed Antarctica, so you get authorization from Chile, which he didn’t obviously.

I imagine they don’t just give out permission to any teenager in his Skyhawk on a whim.

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Standard-Movie-1121@reddit

He thought hem having a million followers made him above the rules

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shadeland@reddit

I've been to that airport! Well, landing field is a better description. I did a marathon in 2014 there.

It's a gravel strip, and there's the hulk of a C-137 that crashed there ages ago.

Flying from Punta Arenas to King George Island is one hell of a stupid risk in a single engine piston. It took a 2 or so hours on a commercial jet when I did it, over rough Antarctic seas. If he had an engine out, even with a survival suite, he would probably be a goner.

Plus, I don't know if they have Avgas there, just Jet A.

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autonym@reddit

If he had an engine out, even with a survival suite, he would probably be a goner.

A survival suit might well be inadequate, but a whole suite would probably be ok--certainly much more comfortable!

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RealPutin@reddit

Flying from Punta Arenas to King George Island is one hell of a stupid risk in a single engine piston. It took a 2 or so hours on a commercial jet when I did it, over rough Antarctic seas. If he had an engine out, even with a survival suite, he would probably be a goner.

It's about 700nm, for reference. Flyable in a Skylane, but yeah, a huge risk.

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shadeland@reddit

I was aboard this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Aerospace_146

One of the weirder planes I've been in (though not as weird as the Skyvans).

Presumably they needed the high wing engines to keep gravel from being sucked into them.

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RealPutin@reddit

Yeah, high-wings are great for Antartica and any other undeveloped surfaces. There's a gravel kit available for the BAE-146 too I think, though it's less necessary than for something like the 737. The old 737-200s with a gravel kit for unpaved strips have a long history in Alaska/Canada for similar missions, so it's quite possible for a long-wing craft, but it's definitely messier.

Bigger airliners in Antarctica usually only operate in/out of the ice runways

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shadeland@reddit

There's a DC-9 I skydive out of in Perris, CA that might be good for it too.

It's one of the rare variants with a short body and long wings for short field takeoffs. The engines are high enough, too I think.

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shadeland@reddit

I've been to that airport! Well, landing field is a better description. I did a marathon in 2014 there.

It's a gravel strip, and there's the hulk of a C-137 that crashed there ages ago.

Flying from Punta Arenas to King George Island is one hell of a stupid risk in a single engine piston. It took a 2 or so hours on a commercial jet when I did it, over rough Antarctic seas. If he had an engine out, even with a survival suite, he would probably be a goner.

Plus, I don't know if they have Avgas there, just Jet A.

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Hour-Divide3661@reddit

It was a Skylane. Much more capable aircraft.

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aftcg@reddit

Yeah that plane should give him carte blanche

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Interanal_Exam@reddit

🤣🤣🤣

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JohnathanMaravilla@reddit (OP)

Would this be a reportable incident under 14 CFR 91.703 or even 14 CFR 91?

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Easy-Trouble7885@reddit

Well he has an N number aircraft but he is not in a country where FAA regs apply, Chilean Aeronautical Authority doesn't enforce any 14 CFR rules

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flyMeToCruithne@reddit

Antarctica isn't administered by any country or government, per the Antarctic Treaty System. However individual countries have research bases and landing strips, and they are allowed to regulate access to the research base, the landing strip, and the immediate area around them, usually a ~1 mile radius, but sometimes more if it matters for science activities (e.g. a larger keep-out zone around areas with seismometers or atmospheric monitoring equipment ). So no one country controls permission to access Antarctica, but each country is allowed regulate access to their own facilities. If you go to the middle of nowhere, in principle you can do that with no permission from anybody. If you're a citizen of a country that has signed the Antarctic Treaty System, you would be required to adhere to some rules, especially around environmental stewardship.

In this case, he landed on a landing strip controlled by Chile without their permission, which is unsurprisingly not OK. It's also winter there, so very much not an appropriate time to be flying in that area. It has been done before (twin otter to the South Pole from Chile via Rothera station, and back, at midwinter) but that was for a life-and-death emergency medical evacuation.

He probably could have done this with permission no problem if he had just planned better and done it in the Antarctic summer. Maybe not at that specific base (I don't know if that one specifically normally allows outsiders to use the landing strip), but certainly one of the peninsula air strips. Tourist flights pass the Antarctic peninsula all the time in summer.

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mkosmo@reddit

Chile has its own laws protecting Antarctica. Their laws recognize the Antarctic Treaty as a mechanism to be there legally.

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VelitGames@reddit

So does any treaty territory have the rights to allow certain access? What does that process look like and what could've this guy done to not end up in jail?

It's not like he's some flearther trying to get himself killed, at least from what I've read.

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mkosmo@reddit

Any of the treaty signatories can issue the required permits. For a US national? It's an application process through the NSF.

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shadeland@reddit

I did a marathon at that Chilean base a few years back. The tour company organized the Marathon did all the paperwork. I even have a stamp on my passport!

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AWACS_Bandog@reddit

Womp womp. Shoulda flown to the Norwegian sector. Make it harder to detain

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amoxy@reddit

Norwegian jail is likely a whole lot nicer than Chilean one too.

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AWACS_Bandog@reddit

except you'll be expected to eat Norwegian food... not sure anyone should be put through such a fate

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PetesGuide@reddit

Are you talking about the non-refrigerated fish, perchance?

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amoxy@reddit

Not a connoisseur of brown cheese eh?

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

…. what cheese? 😭

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mkosmo@reddit

The things they do to fish should be war crimes.

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tomdarch@reddit

Where specifically did he land? Do they have av gas there? Sounds like a bunch of dick moves stacked on top of each other.

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holein3@reddit

His airplane has ferry tanks and he landed at SCRM. Only 670nm from SCCI, where he took off. I assume he had enough fuel to get back without fueling in Antarctica.

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tomdarch@reddit

Part of why I asked about where was looking at the map and seeing those closer islands versus the few bases on the mainland. I guess he isn't being picky about what constitutes "flying to Antarctica" when stunting like this.

I wonder how big the tanks are and how close he'd be cutting things without being able to refuel?

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holein3@reddit

17hr per his website:

"I am flying a modified four-seater Cessna 182, with the rear seats removed to accommodate an additional fuel tank. I can stay airborne for up to 17 hours at a cruising speed of 140-150 knots. I have a satellite connection to my ground team and three emergency locator transmitters on board."

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Vihurah@reddit

I wonder if he realized how useless those 3 ELTs would be by the time they're sea took him. I'm really worried hes going to walk away thinking hes God and get himself killed down the road

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OverallPreparation65@reddit

What are you doing in your life that this makes you so upset? Pilots get killed in the U.S. doing pattern work. This person (while breaking a a reg, yes) is doing something almost anyone would love to do. You don’t have to have an opinion on it. Doesn’t affect you.

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Vihurah@reddit

heh, and by the same token you dont have to have an opinion on my having an opinion, but...

why does it annoy me? because its a pilot breaking a reg, endangering their life, violating airspace, and whats worse, theyre broadcasting it for the world to see. i dont like that when this kid gets off with a slap on the wrist, which he might well, its going to breed an idea that taking risks like these i acceptable in himself and his viewers.

as for the second point, sure, id love to make a flight like that. in fact i can with enough effort. i will not however, because it is flat out NOT SAFE, and that should always be reason enough.

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OverallPreparation65@reddit

I think if Reddit was around in the age of Lindbergh, Earhart, and Byrd the discourse would be very similar to this. Taking serious personal risks is ok as long as you don’t endanger others (it would take a lot of logical leaps and assumptions to suggest that this directly endangers others), and you can’t always look at private undertakings with the same safety management lens as air carrier operations. It’s also not one person’s responsibility to be a good “role model” for others or to de-influence them from doing risky things.

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DogeLikestheStock@reddit

If he crashes in the water there will be a huge search diverting life saving assets to some rich punk. SAR will accept some personal risk in looking for him along his flight path or in Alaska, all of which are hostile environments in which to operate.

My same views on a solo hiker who went in unprepared and needs med evac from a scene or a guy bleeding all over the back of our aircraft because he tried to off himself. Like yeah we are coming to try to save you, but now the flight nurse is covered in blood and your family is devastated. That makes you a jerk.

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OverallPreparation65@reddit

Same risk SAR teams take on when someone loses an engine over the rockies or Lake Michigan. Thousands of people fly single engine planes every day over places where it would be difficult to attempt a rescue. I did it professionally in Alaska for years… starting when I was the same age this kid is now. Was I needlessly endangering lives or was that ok because I was flying for a Part 135 air carrier instead of having supposedly rich parents?

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itsCamaro@reddit

Honestly, I think the kid is probably scared shitless and will realize it was probably too risky. If anything Im sure it will be a good life lesson even if he has my respect.

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shadeland@reddit

I've been to that "airport" (a gravel field). I would almost guarantee there's no avgas there. I would have thought no one would be stupid enough to fly there in a piston, as ditching has pretty much a zero survivability chance, but it seems I've again underestimated stupid.

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ajcaca@reddit

The article linked above says that Chilean authorities plan to let him fly it back.

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tomdarch@reddit

"The mean old Chileans won't let my noble fundraising plane leave Antarctica. Plz gib monies!"

That's a bit cynical of me, but I do suspect that is how this may play out.

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ZeePM@reddit

Isn’t it the middle of winter down there right now? Is it even safe to go this time of the year, in a C172 no less.

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itsCamaro@reddit

It was a C182, but good point

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shadeland@reddit

It is 100% a really, really dumb idea to fly a piston single engine over the rough Antarctic seas any time of the year. But yean in the winder? Bonkers nuts.

It took about 2 or so hours I think in a four engine jet to fly the route he took.

Plus I don't think they even have avgas at that base. How the fuck was he supposed to fly back?

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rckid13@reddit

Plus I don't think they even have avgas at that base. How the fuck was he supposed to fly back?

I assume he knew he wasn't going to be allowed to do that.

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SpaceTortuga@reddit

he is lucky to be alive

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ZOB_oo_land@reddit

Isn’t it the middle of winter down there

So here's the thing

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s2soviet@reddit

I’m starting to think he was raising money for the legal fees and complications.

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IngenuityLow7089@reddit

Honestly, he’s just discriminated in Chile because he's Asian during their election period and we all know Chile’s history with Salvador Allende. Meanwhile, the ‘Wild Viking’ who sailed illegally without license and permission to Antarctica was released by the Chilean authorities in 10 days with no charge at all.

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holein3@reddit

Get ready to learn Antarctican, Ethan. You won't be flying out of there for awhile.

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Easy-Foundation-4278@reddit

It's ok, I'm in south America, I'm US citizen, they are going to laugh when I land my plane at the antarctic and they will send me back

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China_bot42069@reddit

I’m more shocked that he flew a 172 through the drake passage in the worst time of year and made it. Honestly surprised a 172 made it lol

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

it’s a 182 but the difference is negligible. Insanely reckless

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Robthenub@reddit

I wouldn’t say negligible. The 182t climbs wayyy better then the 172s in warm weather

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DDX1837@reddit

It looks like a Kenai. So he's probably got some ferry tanks in it because there's no way he's getting 100LL at King George Island.

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PilotsNPause@reddit

From his website:

"I am flying a modified four-seater Cessna 182, with the rear seats removed to accommodate an additional fuel tank. I can stay airborne for up to 17 hours at a cruising speed of 140-150 knots. I have a satellite connection to my ground team and three emergency locator transmitters on board."

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tomdarch@reddit

2 x 700nm when your tanks can take you 1500nm is pushing things anywhere, but particularly iffy in that part of the world.

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DDX1837@reddit

That's the longest flight that I could see. I doubt that his 1,550nm flight had him landing with dry tanks. But that's just a guess based on his plan to fly Newfoundland to Iceland to Scotland.

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ResponsibilityOld164@reddit

Although I concur, I moreso mean for this scenario. Warm weather performance isn’t a huge difference in Antarctica. However I should have made myself more clear.

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China_bot42069@reddit

182 makes more sense but still. The weather doesn’t care whether your in paddle boat or a canoe. Your getting banged around plus other issues

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shadeland@reddit

My guess is that Cessna is never leaving that island. They're probably not going to let him fly it back, and the number of people dumb enough to try must be very small (I would have though zero, but here we are). Chile would be like "yeah no, we're not going to be responsible for killing some idiot trying to fly that back."

You could try to disassemble it a little and ferry it back on a ship, but that would cost a lot of money.

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holein3@reddit

The local news article infers that he will be able to leave:

According to La Tercera, the defendant will remain free. However, he must comply with the monthly check-in in Antarctica until he has authorization to leave the Antarctic continent and can find a good weather window to arrange his return flight to Punta Arenas.

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shadeland@reddit

That may just mean him catching someone else's flight. Weather down there is tricky. We had a 6 day window to try to get down there when I went in the summer, and that was on a quad jet.

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Vihurah@reddit

I just learned about this guy last week. I guess this affirms my initial thoughts of him, brave but more energy than brains, this was exceedingly foolish.

It sucks to see because it's my dream too, but I've come to terms with the fact that there's too much risk in an adventure like that. I guess he didn't think so

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This Sunday, the formal arrest of the American citizen who was detained on Saturday after landing in Chilean Antarctica without prior authorization was finalized.

The defendant, identified as Ethan Guo, was arrested on Saturday and brought before the court to be formally charged with crimes punishable under Articles 194 and 197 of the Aeronautical Code.

According to Cristián Crisosto, the regional prosecutor for Magallanes and Chilean Antarctica, the suspect, during the early morning of June 28, piloted his Cessna 182Q aircraft, registration N182WT, reporting that he would take off from Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Airport in Punta Arenas and fly over the area.

However, the information provided to the aeronautical authority was false. “He submitted a flight plan indicating he was going to fly over the city of Punta Arenas. However, he continued on his way to Antarctica without any prior notice or authorization, landing at Teniente Marsh Airfield, in Chilean Antarctic territory.”

“With this conduct, the defendant seriously endangered the safety of air traffic to Antarctica and the Magallanes Region, which is why he was charged,” the prosecutor added.

At the hearing, precautionary measures of national detention and monthly signature were ordered. Ninety days were established for the investigation to be conducted.

Prosecutor Cristián Crisosto alleged that “not only did the defendant, with his conduct, violate the Aeronautical Code, but also multiple national and international regulations regarding the route to Antarctica and access to the white continent.”

"It is worth highlighting the impeccable and professional work of the Chilean Navy in receiving this defendant in Antarctica and ensuring, at all times, all the guarantees of the criminal process for him and all those involved," he concluded.

According to La Tercera, the defendant will remain free. However, he must comply with the monthly check-in in Antarctica until he has authorization to leave the Antarctic continent and can find a good weather window to arrange his return flight to Punta Arenas.

Furthermore, it was also specified that upon leaving Antarctica, he must establish a domicile in the Magallanes Region to continue complying with the precautionary measure. Despite this, the possibility of a hearing for July 11, at 8:00 a.m., is being considered to find an alternative solution to the case.