Influencer Stuck in Antarctic Air Base for 2 Months Has Been Released

American influencer Ethan Guo has been released after being stuck in an Antarctica Chilean airbase for two months.

Guo, 20, was sent back to the mainland on Saturday, September 6, where he is set to pay $30,000 in penalties. He was asked to leave the country as soon as possible and is banned from entering Chilean territory for three years.

After he landed at Punta Arenas aboard a navy ship on Saturday, Guo described his experience as “mundane” with “limited freedoms.”

“The Chilean people have been incredibly hospitable, they’ve been fantastic people,” he said, per the Associated Press. “They’ve taken care of me. They’ve taught me Spanish, and they’ve treated me like family.”

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Guo has since spent months living in the base with limited communication amid freezing temperatures. The influencer landed a plane in Antarctica without permission in June, attempting to become the youngest person to fly solo to all seven continents.

Chilean authorities told CNN at the time that Guo allegedly broke “multiple national and international regulations” when he changed his flight path without warning or proper authorization.

Law enforcement claimed at the time that Guo submitted a false flight plan, taking off from Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Airport in Punta Arenas before turning his course and heading to Antarctica. Guo was immediately taken into custody after he landed at Lieutenant Rodolfo Marsh Base.

Guo’s lawyer, Karina Ulloa, shared during a press conference in June that he “experienced a series of complications” while in the air, claiming that he “was conducting an exploratory flight to see if he could follow this route or not.”

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Guo was charged in June with allegedly giving false information to ground control and landing without permission, but the charges have since been dropped.

“I remain in Antarctica awaiting approval for my departure flight,” Guo told Associated Press after the judge’s ruling. “I sincerely hope they give it to me soon so that I and my plane can continue with my original mission.”

The influencer started his travels in 2024, raising money for cancer after his cousin’s diagnosis.

“In 2021 my cousin was diagnosed with cancer. I admire him. He inspired me to take life more seriously and join the fight against cancer,” Guo’s website reads. “I want to use every opportunity to raise awareness of childhood cancer and the necessity to increase research efforts to find prevention and treatment methods.”

After his release, Guo has been asked to donate the money he fundraised for his travels to a childhood cancer foundation within 30 days.