By Gates L. Scott

You know the age-old question: If a tree falls in the forest and no one is there to hear it, does it actually make a sound? Well, the forest has a great deal to tell about the thousands of downed and missing aircraft that are hidden amongst its underbrush.

The rugged mountains of Northern and Southern California have gobbled up countless aircraft that remain missing to this day—some from as far back as 1943. Due to the proliferation of aircraft manufacturing, the strong military presence, military training installations, and the highest concentration of aviators in the United States, California has become the capital of recovered aircraft wreckage. Most training flights gone bad originated from military bases that dotted the state, both during and after World War II.

Aircraft and their pilots have vanished for decades now, leaving family members and the U.S. military stumped as to what happened. Planes have disappeared from radar, lost communications, and simply evaporated out of the sky into the unknown. They blend into the topography and leave searchers baffled. This rugged and remote country, known for serene beauty and vast open spaces, carries secrets that many are trying to uncover.

Finding Fossett

On Oct. 2, 2008, the remains of millionaire and aviation enthusiast Steve Fossett and his Citabria Super Decathlon were found in the high Sierra Mountains of Northern California. In a report published by The New York Times, the operations officer for the Emergency Management Division in Nevada, Gary Derks, who led a five-week search for Fossett said of the terrain, “It’s unforgiving.” In the same area, in 2005, two hikers found a World War II flier, more than a half-century old, carrying an unopened parachute and an old fountain pen. Debris from the space shuttle Columbia was even recovered in this part of the range.

“It is an area known for its intense scenic beauty—waterfalls, crater lakes and volcanic oddities,” the article reads. People find themselves drawn to this type of sanctuary, but sometimes they can’t find their way out and remain alongside their secrets. Suicides, aircraft wreckage, and abandoned cars are discovered with regularity in this beautiful region. Bodies of travelers who lost their way are discovered half eaten by wildlife—as was Fossett’s.

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