Search for missing Kiwi paraglider James Oroc in Nevada, US

New Zealander James Oroc has been missing in Nevada since Saturday, local time.

A Kiwi paraglider pilot is missing in the western United States after setting off for a weekend flight.

It is feared that James "Kiwi" Oroc (Johnston) crashed in Nevada, where he was paragliding at the time, worried friends say.

Well-known in the paragliding community in the US, Oroc was last seen on Saturday, local time, southwest of Eureka County in Nevada.

An extensive search and rescue operation is now under way in the area of Nye County, near the Eureka County.

Searchers have been scouring the terrain by foot and by air, the Eureka County Sheriff's Office said.

The Eureka office was assisting the Nye County Sheriff's Office, with the latter being in charge of the search and rescue operation.

More than US$50,000 ($77,000) has already been raised to support search efforts for the journalist, photographer, and artist on a GoFundMe page set up by worried friends nearly 12 hours ago.

Funds raised on the page would go towards the costs of fuelling the air searches in the area.

"If you don't know 'Kiwi' you've probably read his pieces in Cross Country magazine and Free Flight. He's been a friendly big personality in paragliding for 30 years," the page says.

"Originally from New Zealand, he lived in Jackson Hole and more recently New Orleans in between flying adventures."

James "Kiwi" Oroc is assumed crashed and injured in Nevada, worried friends say.

Searchers were working on the theory that Oroc had been separated from his GPS tracker and may have fallen, the page said.

With an elevation peak of 3055m, Nine Mile Peak is the highest point in Nevada's Antelope Range, according to mountaineering community website Summitpost.

A number of commercial pilots and paragliders had joined in the search efforts, with three aircraft in the skies just hours into the search.

Since 1998 Oroc has "pursued and reported on the cutting edge of extreme sports" in more than 40 countries around the world, his website says.

Oroc's work has appeared in magazines, films, and on MTV Sports.

A regular contributor to Cross Country magazine, Oroc had 30 years' experience as a pilot, the magazine shared online.

"We hope he'll be walking out with one hell of a story."

But time was of the essence in the search and recovery efforts, with fires in the area hampering visibility and storms forecasted to hit, the post said.

View this post on Instagram

James Kiwi Johnston is a big heart, big soul, and a pilot for 30 years, well known on the scene in USA and his native NZ. He has gone missing while flying in Nevada - last tracker ping was from 14,500ft on Saturday afternoon. There is a "huge crew" of search and rescue and pilots converging on the area right now, with three aircraft already in the sky. Gavin McClurg is heading up one of the S&R missions. Fires are hampering efforts, and forecast is for storms later. Kiwi is a longtime contributor to Cross Country and life. We hope he'll be walking out with one hell of a story. There is a fundraiser to help pay for S&R airtime - time is of the essence. Link in the bio. 🙏 . . #paragliding #paraglidinglife #nevada #searchandrescue @gavinmcclurg @jamesoroc . . Ps: Just noticed this is xcmag's 1000th insta post. We had been wondering how to post a memorable one. Kiwi - hope you read this soon and laugh your ass off at the joke the cosmos just played!

A post shared by Cross Country (@xcmag) on Aug 24, 2020 at 2:50pm PDT

Active in the paragliding community, Oroc assisted search efforts of another paraglider reported missing in Peru in 2011.

He reported on the experience of searching for his missing friend, Xavier Murillo, for Cross Country magazine.

A member of the Burning Man community since 1999, Oroc is also involved in the documentation and advancement of "Alternative Culture", publishing three books on the use of psychedelics.