Become a digitalPLUS subscriber. $12 for 12 weeks.    Sir Edmund
Hillary, 88; New Zealand mountaineer was first to climb to the
top of Mt. Everest (Jan. 11)  Evelyn Pinckert Brier, 98; widely
regarded as the first licensed female flight instructor in the
United States (Jan. 20)  John W. Myers, 96; renowned test pilot
who flew the Northrop P-61 during World War II (Jan. 31)  Steve
Fossett, 63; millionaire adventurer missing since September 2007
ruled legally dead by an Illinois court. Wreckage of his plane
and his remains found near Mammoth Lakes, Calif., in October
(Feb. 15)  Vicki Van Meter, 26; made headlines in the 1990s when
she piloted a plane across the United States at the age of 11
and flew from the United States to Europe at age 12 (March 15)
G. David Low, 52; NASA astronaut served on three space shuttle
missions (March 15)  Diane Barnato Walker, 90; first British
woman pilot to break the sound barrier (April 28)  Ralph S.
Plaisted, 80; a Minnesota insurance salesman turned explorer who
in 1968 led