A teenage aviator, who is also a social media content creator and influencer, was detained in Antarctica while he was trying to fly solo to all seven continents around the world.
The individual, identified as 19-year-old Ethan Guo, was documenting his journey online and sharing his flight with other people. Chilean authorities detained him earlier this week as they argued that he did not have authorization to land his plane on an island off Antarctica.
Teenage Pilot Detained After Landing in Antarctica
In an interview on Thursday, Guo said that he was being housed at a Chilean base on King George Island while the case against him proceeds. Officials later said that while the teenager was initially detained, he was allowed to leave the island with the condition that he remain in Chile while his case was still ongoing.
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The teen was sharing his solo flight around the world on TikTok and Instagram, letting his more than 329,000 followers and roughly 1.3 million followers, respectively, watch his progress. Guo had acquired his pilot's license at 17 years old and planned to become the first to fly in a small aircraft to all seven continents, according to the New York Times.
Guo also wanted to use his journey and the fact that he was able to share it with the world to raise $1 million in support of cancer research. The teen's detention comes as Antarctica was the only continent that he had not landed on yet.
Violating National and International Regulations
At around 5:30 a.m. on Saturday, he took off on his plane from Punta Arenas, which is a city found near the southern tip of Chile, with a flight plan that indicated he planned to fly over the city and land again in Punta Arenas.
However, the regional prosecutor of Magallanes and Chilean Antarctica, Cristian Cristoso Rifo, said that Guo conducted an unauthorized flight to King George Island. The island is situated off the Atlantic coast and is claimed by Chile as part of its Atlantic territory, CBS News reported.
The prosecutor in the case said that Guo continued to fly toward Antarctica without informing anyone and landed at the airfield of Lieutenant Rodolfo Marsh Base in Chilean Antarctic territory.
Rifo explained that when the teenager landed in Antarctica, officials quickly detained and formally charged him. The prosecutor said that the content creator not only violated the Aeronautical Code but also several national and international regulations, as per CNN.
