We know they left, but where did they go? Quiz

Answer: He was suspected of murder

After a bitter divorce John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan, was suspected of murdering Sandra Rivett, the nanny of his children, and assaulting his ex-wife, Veronica Duncan.

When the body was discovered Lord Lucan had fled in a borrowed car. The car was found later in East Essex but no trace of Lord Lucan was ever found.

Answer: Jim Thompson

After spending most of WWII in Asia working for the OSS, American national Jim Thompson returned to Thailand in 1946 after discharge from the army. There he founded the Thai Silk Company in 1948. He was the first to introduce quality Thai silk to the world markets and he was spectacularly successful. By the late fifties the company was known worldwide and exported silk worth millions of US$ per year.

On 26 March 1967, while on holiday in the Cameron Highlands in mainland Malaysia, Jim Thompson went for an afternoon stroll after lunch. When he had not returned by 8 pm the police were notified. The next day saw the largest search and rescue operation ever undertaken in Malaysia but no trace of Thompson was ever found.

Answer: Steve Fossett

Born in Jackson, Tennessee, Steve Fossett held the record for the first flight across the Pacific Ocean in a hot-air balloon in 1995. He also held the records for the first solo trip around the world in a hot-air balloon (2002), fastest travel around the globe in a sailboat (2004), first solo nonstop journey around the world in an airplane (2005) and highest altitude traveled in a sailplane (2006).

In September 2007, he disappeared while flying solo over the Sierra Nevada. A large search operation failed to find any trace of him.

In September 2008, hikers found his identity papers in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California, and the crash site was discovered on October 1, 2008.

Answer: Harold Holt

Harold Holt had been in office for only 22 months when he disappeared while swimming at Cheviot Beach, Victoria. No trace of him was ever found.

Answer: Pacific Ocean in 1937

Amelia Earhart was a female aviation pioneer who disappeared over the Pacific while trying to circumnavigate the globe. Previous to that attempt she had been the first female to fly solo over the Atlantic Ocean in 1932.

Answer: Malaysia Airlines flight MH370

The Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 took off from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for a six-hour flight to Beijing, China. An hour into the flight the transponders were turned off and the plane veered off course, heading southwest for the Indian Ocean. No trace or debris was found, although the search is continuing and it might yet be found.

Answer: In 1913, during the Mexican revolution

Ambrose Bierce was an American editor, journalist and writer. In 1913, aged 71, he traveled to Mexico the report on the Mexican revolution. While travelling with rebel troops of Pancho Villa he disappeared without trace. His last known sign of life was a letter he wrote to a friend, Blanche Partington. Dated December 26, 1913, he finished the letter by saying, "As to me, I leave here tomorrow for an unknown destination".

His disappearance caused a huge uproar in American literary circles.

Answer: The crew and passengers disappeared without a trace in the South Pacific

Merchant vessel MV Joyita was found adrift in the South Pacific in 1955 without its 25 passengers or crew. Although the ship was listing badly she was not in danger of sinking. As the vessel was made of wood the buoyancy of the ship made sinking nearly impossible. Nobody ever discovered why the crew and passengers abandoned ship and what happened to them.

Answer: Agatha Christie

In 1926, while having marital problems, Agatha Christie suddenly disappeared for 11 days. She told her secretary she was going to Yorkshire but she never arrived there. Later her car was found abandoned at a lake near Guildford. Over a thousand police officers, more than 15,000 volunteers and a number of airplanes joined the search.

After 11 days Agatha Christie was found at the Swan Hydropathic Hotel in Harrogate, Yorkshire, where she was registered as a Mrs Teresa Neele from Cape Town. She never explained what had happened.

Answer: A plane hijacker

In November 1971, a man calling himself Dan Cooper boarded a Northwest Orient Airlines flight from Portland to Seattle. He passed a note to the flight attendant stating he had a bomb in his briefcase. He then showed her the open briefcase containing cylinders, batteries and wiring. Demanding US$ 200,000 and 4 parachutes the plane landed in Seattle where the money and parachutes were delivered.

After releasing the passengers the plane took off again. Twenty minutes after take off, Cooper parachuted out of the plane, never to be seen again. To this day his real identity is unknown.