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heraldnet.com


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Send letters to the editor by e-mail to letters@heraldnet.com, by fax to 425-339-3458 or mail to The Herald - Letters, P.O. Box 930, Everett, WA 98206.

 
WEEK IN REVIEW
Wednesday


Friends plan auction, hope to save woman's home
Man blackmailed ex-girlfriend with nude picture...
Traffic deaths decline in Washington
Tuesday


Sauk River will run its course again
Heroin blamed in Mukilteo teen's death
Monroe motorcyclist dies in U.S. 2 crash
Monday


Suspects in Monroe burglary found sleeping on b...
Sounder fills up with new riders
Look for Camano Island actress, 16, on Broadway
Sunday


A life interrupted
Everett composting company ordered to track dow...
WASL questions dominate at forum
Saturday


Marysville teen to race as Olympian for the Mar...
Teen burglar can't run forever, police say
New branch campus in Snohomish County doesn't a...
Friday


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Everett's study on Paine Field air service chan...
Two jailed suspects may be involved in dozens o...
Thursday


Cheers, fears as AM radio towers rise in Snohomish
Study backs Paine Field passenger service
How county residents are dealing with the economy
 

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Published: Friday, October 5, 2007

Fossett search points out double standard

In theory, we are all equal. In practice, not so much.

On Tuesday, the search for millionaire aviator Steve Fossett, who disappeared a month ago in Nevada, was suspended again after what the Civil Air Patrol described as one of the largest efforts to locate a missing plane in modern history.

Fossett, 63, is known for sailing and flying around the world, setting aviation and distance records, including becoming the first person to complete a solo uninterrupted flight around the world in a hot-air balloon, and making the longest nonstop flight in aviation history.

The search had been renewed after Air Force experts thought they detected Fossett's flight path from radar and satellite images.

According to the Associated Press, the search encompassed a 20,000 square-mile area, involving Civil Air Patrol pilots from Nevada and seven other states, the Nevada National Guard, the Air Force Rescue and Coordination Center, the state Department of Public Safety and ground crews organized by local authorities.

Experts in radar analysis from the Federal Aviation Administration, Air Force, Navy, National Transportation Safety Board and the Civil Air Patrol also were involved, using high-tech methods to try to determine Fossett's flight path. A sonar-equipped boat has was used to search a lake to determine whether Fossett's plane crashed there.

After the first two weeks, organizers estimated the effort cost about $600,000.

Would every missing pilot get a search of this magnitude? Of course not.

For example, during the hunt for Fossett, searchers spotted three crashed planes that had never been noticed. Now that the Fossett search is over, according to the New York Times, the Civil Air Patrol and the Nevada Division of Emergency Management plan to return to those sites to investigate.

We hope the Fossett family steps foward and pays for the unprecedented search. Otherwise, what does the Civil Air Patrol say to the family of Average Joe Pilot when his plane goes down, and the search is suspended after two days?

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2. Snohomish motorcyclist dies in collision with pickup
3. Police looking for man who held up Everett pharmacy
4. Friends plan auction, hope to save woman's home
5. Sheriff warns of Camano Island burglar
6. Arlington private school principal charged with child rape
7. 400 open houses across the county this weekend
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Fewer sports fields could go into Hamlin Park
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