British explorer missing in Papua New Guinea

A search has been mounted for British explorer Benedict Allen, who has gone missing on an expedition in Papua New Guinea.

The 57-year-old was travelling to locate the remote Yaifo tribe, who he first met 30 years ago, the BBC reports. He is understood to have been undertaking the expedition alone.

His sister says she reported him missing after he missed his planned flights home. She had expected to hear from the explorer by Monday.

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“For everybody else, it's very exciting – all the expeditions and all the things he does. But for his sister and his wife, it's more of a worry,” she told BBC Radio 4.

A helicopter pilot who dropped Allen off at the start of the expedition is understood to be tracing his route from his starting point to locate him.

Local police chiefs have also been alerted to the disappearance.

“Landslides, torrential downpours and sometimes an eruption of fighting between local tribes can all throw itineraries off-course” in Papua New Guinea, says the BBC's Frank Gardner. However, “foreign travellers are rarely targeted outside the main towns.

“Knowing Benedict,” he adds, “it is also quite possible that he has accepted an invitation to stay on longer for a tribal ceremony - it can also be considered an insult to refuse.”

Allen recently worked with The Week UK in association with National Geographic, bringing insight into the world of mass extinctions.