James Stephen Fossett (April 22, 1944 – September 3, 2007) was an American businessman and a record-breaking aviator, sailor, and adventurer. He became the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world both in a balloon and a fixed-wing aircraft. Fossett made his fortune in the financial services industry and set world records in five nonstop Earth circumnavigations— as a solo balloonist, sailor, and fixed-wing aircraft pilot. A member of the Royal Geographical Society and the Explorers Club, Fossett set over 100 records in five sports, with 60 still standing at the time of his death. He broke three of the seven absolute world records for fixed-wing aircraft, all achieved in the Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer. In 2002, he received the Gold Medal from the Royal Aero Club of the UK and was posthumously inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 2007. On September 3, 2007, Fossett disappeared while flying a light aircraft over the Great Basin Desert, between Nevada and California. His wrecked plane was found in 2008.

Steve Fossett - Wikipedia