US pilot Bill Fitzpatrick still missing

Odzala’s pilot Bill Fitzpatrick has still not been found, despite intensive aerial and ground searches since he went missing on June 22 en route between Nigeria and Cameroon.

The search is being coordinated by the US State Department and includes representatives from the Limbe Special Forces Team, a division of AFRICOM (the United States Africa Command), as well as Cameroon authorities.

Fitzpatrick, a US citizen and the resident pilot at Odzala-Kokoua National Park in Republic of Congo, went missing on June 22 after taking off from Kano, Nigeria, in the park’s Cessna 172 at 18h13. He was scheduled to arrive in Doula, Cameroon, later that evening, but failed to do so.

His last known contact with the Doula air traffic control tower was at approximately 22h00 when he was 62 nautical miles from his destination.

An intensive aerial and ground search was launched on June 23involving Cameroon and US authorities as well as a private plane chartered by African Parks.

Radio and TV broadcasts in Cameroon yielded some ground information, which led to the search being focused on the areas of Bandja and Punja in Cameroon last week. However this information has failed to yield any sign of the pilot or plane.

Bill Fitzpatrick was flying the plane alone at the time of his disappearance.

The newly acquired Cessna 172 was recently flown from the US to Dakar in Senegal where it was collected by Fitzpatrick on June 19.

His route plan comprising short hops between Senegal, Mali, Nigeria and Cameroon, and then on to the Republic of Congo, was organised by a UK-based flight planning and clearance company.