The search for two champion American balloonists competing in the Coupe Aeronautique Gordon Bennett has been called off after four days and no trace of their aerostat, "USA2," having been located.
Carol Rymer-Davis, who appeared at this years’ Great Reno Balloon Race, and fellow pilot Richard Abruzzos’ last radioed position placed their hydrogen filled German sport balloon at 5300 feet above the Adriatic Sea off the Italian coast.
There were thunderstorms in the area, and the crew radioed local Air Traffic Controllers that they were having weather problems shortly before six a.m. on Wednesday Sept. 29th.
There was no further contact by ATC.
Tracking information, sent automatically every fifteen minutes, shows a severe descent, with speeds at fifty miles per hour, indicating a catastrophic event of some kind.
USA2, registration N801NM, was contending with nineteen other teams from Europe and Japan in the 54th edition of the Gordon Bennett Cup. The object of the race, first held in 1906 in France, is to travel the farthest on one fill of hydrogen.

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