OPINION: The continuing search for Amelia Earhart and her Lockheed Electra

Editor’s note: Dorothy Cochran is curator of general aviation in the aviation division of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, where she is responsible for the collection of general aviation aircraft and flight materials, aerial cameras, and the history of women in aviation. The views expressed here are hers.read more opinion On CNN.

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The sonar images are interesting, to say the least. A marine robotics company recently captured an object on the ocean floor about 15,000 feet below the surface of the Pacific Ocean.

The object, vaguely resembling an airplane, was about 160 miles from Howland Island, an uninhabited island just north of the equator, where pilot Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan were scheduled to land on the morning of July 2, 1937. It’s located far away. Their failure to reach Howland in a Lockheed 10-E Electra after a more than 19-hour flight from Lae, New Guinea, made headline news more than 87 years ago and remains one of the greatest unsolved mysteries of modern times. I am.

Earhart earned the Distinguished Flying Cross, consistently made lists of the most acclaimed best-dressed men of her time, and was the first woman to fly solo, non-stop, across the Atlantic and the United States in 1932. She set several speed and altitude records. The world mourned – and still does – when she disappeared in 1937 while trying to fly around the world. She continues to fascinate us because she flew at a time when very few people flew, and even fewer women. She was a pioneer in the aviation industry and a bona fide celebrity. As I wrote in 2017, she had “achieved financial and personal independence, but I empathized with the average woman and challenged her to be more independent. She used her celebrity status to advocate for personal, legal, and social change.” Her fate remains one of America’s greatest unsolved mysteries.

Tony Romeo, CEO of Deep Sea Vision (DSV), believes Earhart’s plane is visible in the submersible’s images. Although some experts aren’t sure, it’s safe to say that Romeo and his team have at least discovered something worthy of further investigation. It is hoped that another investigation will yield a photographic image with clearer details about its identity.

While we wait for more details, the good news for me and many other historians, aviation enthusiasts, and Earhart fans is that DSV is following the facts of her flight. Given how many theories surround Earhart’s fate, it’s important that DSV takes a fact-based approach and searches in the right areas of the Pacific. Mobilizing the necessary resources and funding is difficult, and deep-sea searches can be daunting and tedious. Therefore, it makes sense to stick with the assumption that Earhart and Noonan were following their intended flight path, that is, they were actually flying towards Howland Island.

Not everyone follows the logic of this plan. Many other theories have been floated regarding their disappearance and final resting place. To date, no one has found conclusive evidence of Earhart, Noonan, or Lockheed Electra.

But those who follow the facts of flight should have an advantage. Earhart’s flight plan was well known. According to Earhart’s biographer, Doris Rich, the U.S. government had obtained permits for the countries she would stop at along the way. As the Roosevelt administration was establishing a U.S. presence in the Western Pacific in the face of a growing Japanese presence, Earhart’s husband, George Putnam, suggested a port call at Howland Island, writes Rich. .

And it met her needs for a refueling stop in the Western Pacific.The U.S. government built a landing strip and secured a U.S. Coast Guard cutter itasca It was there to store fuel for the next leg of the flight from Howland to Honolulu, Hawaii. The stage is set. Earhart’s sporadic radio transmissions itasca As the time of her arrival approached, the voice grew stronger and stronger, indicating that she was nearing the island. In some of her last communications, she said she only had 30 minutes of fuel left. The transcript is itasca And she’s quoted in almost every article, newsreel, and book about her: “We’re supposed to be protecting you, but we can’t see you. But we’re running low on gas.” . The captain and crew said in official records cited by Rich that she was confident Earhart was not far away.

Searching near Howland was, and still is, a natural thing to do. The U.S. government immediately launched a sea and air search around the 250,000-square-mile island and other islands that Rich had identified, all of which were found by air. The official search for him was called off on July 19, 1937. However, private underwater expeditions such as those carried out by DSV continue.

How do you choose a worthwhile search area in the 21st century? This is a difficult decision, given the size of “reasonable” locations around Howland when fuel runs out. In 1997, pilot Ergen Long and his wife Marie Long published a book called “Amelia Earhart: Mystery Solved.” The Longs presented facts and solid assumptions for others to follow. The Longs draw on his 25 years of extensive research, including interviews with Earhart’s contemporaries, U.S. Coast Guard personnel, industry and government experts, and Ergen’s own professional aviation knowledge and calculations (and more). In combination, we reduced the perimeter of possibilities and provided more practical information. Search options.

In the early 2000s, ocean exploration company Nauticos Inc. brought together an experienced oceanography team and was refined and “re-engineered.” Long’s Data and selected sonar search area. The team made three expeditions to the vicinity of Howland Island, but were unable to find any relevant information or images. They are refining their next search area.

DSV leveraged Longs’ research and the team members’ own diverse backgrounds, including the ever-evolving technology industry, to calculate a unique search area and obtain sonar images worthy of further study. The world’s attention is once again on the rise.

Once Lockheed Electra NR16020 is finally discovered, the next challenge will be to assess its condition and determine whether it is feasible or in the best interest to raise it (or part of it) from the ocean floor. It turns out. Recovery is very difficult and expensive, so a preservation plan must be in place before recovery. The National Air and Space Museum would certainly be interested in its final disposition.

It’s natural to want to know what happened to one of the most famous figures of the 20th century. How could she, the Navigator, and Electra disappear? In the end, various problems arise, especially communication problems with the other party. itasca, destined for safe arrival at Howland. But if we can answer this question, we can incorporate it into the larger picture of Earhart’s life and legacy.

Aviator Earhart made significant contributions both as a record-breaking pilot and as a woman. Her instructor Earhart made a living for herself and supported the well-being and advancement of women. Celebrity Earhart drew people to the aviation industry. She still continues to do all of that. We all want a solution to this persistent mystery.