An American teenager has been detained on an Antarctic island, creating a major delay in his attempt to fly his small plane to every continent that is being followed online by more than a million people.
Chilean authorities stopped Ethan Guo, 19, after he submitted a false flight plan, according to the BBC’s US partner CBS News.
His deviation from that plan in the air had “activated alert protocols”, Chile’s General Directorate of Civil Aeronautics said in a statement.
Mr Guo was taken into custody after landing on King George Island, home to a number of international research stations and their staff, where July temperatures typically stay well below freezing.
Mr Guo’s small Cessna 182 aircraft took off from the city of Punta Arenas, near the southernmost point of Chile, and flew to the island off the Atlantic coast, which is claimed by Chile. It is named after the UK’s King George III.
He was detained at Teniente R. Marsh airport.
Mr Guo had allegedly submitted a plan to fly over Punta Arenas, but not beyond that, according to regional prosecutor Cristian Cristoso Rifo, as cited by CBS.
He has been charged for violating two articles of the country’s aeronautical code, including one that could lead to short-term imprisonment.
In the statement, Chile’s General Directorate of Civil Aeronautics said Mr Guo had also allegedly violated the Antarctic Treaty, which regulates international relations with respect to the uninhabited continent.
Mr Guo posted an update on X on Wednesday, saying: “I’m alive everyone, I’ll make an update soon.”
Ethan Guo has flown his Cessna aircraft to all the other six continents in his journey spanning more than 140 days, according to his social media feed.
He is hoping to become the first pilot to complete solo flights across all seven continents in the Cessna aircraft, and simultaneously aims to raise $1m (£ 731,000) for cancer research at the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
