Charges dropped against teen pilot detained in Antarctica

Charges against an American influencer and teen pilot who has been stranded on a remote island in the Antarctic since June have been dropped.

Ethan Guo, 19, is alleged to have illegally landed his plane in Chilean territory after embarking on a solo trip to all seven continents to raise money for cancer research, according to local authorities.

They accused him of providing false flight plan information to officials who detained him and opened an investigation.

A judge has ordered him to leave the area, pay a $30,000 (£22,332) donation to a children’s cancer foundation and is banned from re-entering Chilean territory for three years.

Mr Guo made headlines last year when he began an attempt to become the youngest person to fly solo to all seven continents and collect donations for research into childhood cancer.

Having already visited six of seven continents, in June he flew his small Cessna 182Q aircraft from the city of Punta Arenas, near the southernmost point of Chile, to King George island off the Atlantic coast, which is claimed by Chile and named after the UK’s King George III.

He was taken into custody after landing on the island, which is home to a number of international research stations and their staff.

Authorities said he submitted a plan to fly over Punta Arenas, but not beyond that, according to CBS News, the BBC’s US partner.

He was charged on 29 June with allegedly handing false information to ground control and landing without authorisation, but these were dropped by a judge on Monday.

“I remain in Antarctica awaiting approval for my departure flight,” Mr Guo told the Associated Press (AP) news agency following the judge’s ruling on Monday. “I sincerely hope they give it to me soon so that I and my plane can continue with my original mission.”

Mr Guo has been staying at a military base on the island for the last six weeks, AP reported. He was told he could travel to other parts of Chile but because of frigid temperatures was unable to leave the island, it added.

Mr Guo is hoping to become the first pilot to complete solo flights across all seven continents in the Cessna aircraft, and has already spent 140 days in the air on his travels.

He decided to raise money for cancer research after his cousin was diagnosed with cancer.

He is aiming to raise $1m for cancer research at St Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee.