The basis for this theory is that she landed on the reef at Gardener Island, with the plane surviving relatively intact; enough to run an engine to power the radio. That means the landing gear had to hold, and the plane didn’t land on water.
Have those people ever seen a coral reef??? They are not a stand-in for a runway. They are far too rugged and uneven to land a plane on. The beach is a far better choice. Just about anywhere is a far better choice. (including in the lagoon itself). I cannot see how a reef landing would be survivable, let alone end up with the plane upright on its landing gear (which it would have to do, to allow an engine to run and thus run the radio, per this theory.).
The theory rules out a beach landing or a ditching in the lagoon because that would leave the plane to be spotted. The reef landing postulates the plane being pushed off the reef into deep water by heavy surf and a high tide a few days later. That part also makes we wonder if they’ve ever seen a reef: an object in the surf on the reef tends to end up being pushed inwards, towards the sheltered waters, not offshore, to deeper waters. But, their theory demands this, because otherwise the plane would have been found by now.
My hunch is thus that the expedition won’t be finding anything provable. Or, maybe they will. I think it’s very possible that the plane was ditched at sea, and either debris, or perhaps the crew as well, made it to shore. I just can’t see how on earth anyone could think a Lockheed Electra could land on a reef and remain upright on her gear. That makes zero sense to me.
“In July, TIGHAR researchers will return to the area where Earhart and Noonan are thought to have spent their last days, using submersibles to try and detect the famous aircraft they believe to have been swept off a Pacific reef in 1937.”
I find it amazing that Amelia and Fred had the resourcefulness to use submersibles to hunt for the aircraft they believe to have been swept off a Pacific reef in 1937, all the while subsisting on rainwater and shellfish…
lol
Drat. Too short.
Actually, I don’t see anything new in the linked article. All of that was covered in Ric Gillespie’s book “Finding Amelia: The True Story of the Earhart Disappearance”, published in 2006. Apparently the British found human remains on Gardner’s Island in 1940 that were since misplaced. The account of the radio distress calls heard by Betty Klenck is absolutely chilling.
On the other hand, there’s also “Amelia Earhart: The Mystery Solved” by Elgen M. Long, published in 1999. He took into account the fuel usage of the Electra (a young Lockheed engineer by the name of Kelly Johnson was involved in calculating those figures) and concluded that there was no way in hell she could have made it to Gardner’s Island, and likely ditched in the ocean near Howland.
Earlier, there was “The Search for Amelia Earhart” by Fred Goerner, published in 1966. He theorized that she landed in the Marshall Islands and was interned by the Japanese and later died on Saipan. Admiral Chester Nimitz was featured prominently in that book, encouraging Goerner in his investigation.
All three books are utterly fascinating, and point in completely different directions.
The only way this thing will be settled one way or another is to find the Electra. If the TIGHAR people think she ended up on Gardner’s Island, then they should be focusing on searching the waters around the island for the plane’s remains.
But Goerner recounted an eyewitness claim that the plane was found during WWII and was deliberately destroyed.
The basis for this theory is that she landed on the reef at Gardener Island, with the plane surviving relatively intact; enough to run an engine to power the radio. That means the landing gear had to hold, and the plane didn’t land on water.
Have those people ever seen a coral reef??? They are not a stand-in for a runway. They are far too rugged and uneven to land a plane on. The beach is a far better choice. Just about anywhere is a far better choice. (including in the lagoon itself). I cannot see how a reef landing would be survivable, let alone end up with the plane upright on its landing gear (which it would have to do, to allow an engine to run and thus run the radio, per this theory.).
The theory rules out a beach landing or a ditching in the lagoon because that would leave the plane to be spotted. The reef landing postulates the plane being pushed off the reef into deep water by heavy surf and a high tide a few days later. That part also makes we wonder if they’ve ever seen a reef: an object in the surf on the reef tends to end up being pushed inwards, towards the sheltered waters, not offshore, to deeper waters. But, their theory demands this, because otherwise the plane would have been found by now.
My hunch is thus that the expedition won’t be finding anything provable. Or, maybe they will. I think it’s very possible that the plane was ditched at sea, and either debris, or perhaps the crew as well, made it to shore. I just can’t see how on earth anyone could think a Lockheed Electra could land on a reef and remain upright on her gear. That makes zero sense to me.
“In July, TIGHAR researchers will return to the area where Earhart and Noonan are thought to have spent their last days, using submersibles to try and detect the famous aircraft they believe to have been swept off a Pacific reef in 1937.”
I find it amazing that Amelia and Fred had the resourcefulness to use submersibles to hunt for the aircraft they believe to have been swept off a Pacific reef in 1937, all the while subsisting on rainwater and shellfish…
lol
Drat. Too short.
Actually, I don’t see anything new in the linked article. All of that was covered in Ric Gillespie’s book “Finding Amelia: The True Story of the Earhart Disappearance”, published in 2006. Apparently the British found human remains on Gardner’s Island in 1940 that were since misplaced. The account of the radio distress calls heard by Betty Klenck is absolutely chilling.
On the other hand, there’s also “Amelia Earhart: The Mystery Solved” by Elgen M. Long, published in 1999. He took into account the fuel usage of the Electra (a young Lockheed engineer by the name of Kelly Johnson was involved in calculating those figures) and concluded that there was no way in hell she could have made it to Gardner’s Island, and likely ditched in the ocean near Howland.
Earlier, there was “The Search for Amelia Earhart” by Fred Goerner, published in 1966. He theorized that she landed in the Marshall Islands and was interned by the Japanese and later died on Saipan. Admiral Chester Nimitz was featured prominently in that book, encouraging Goerner in his investigation.
All three books are utterly fascinating, and point in completely different directions.
The only way this thing will be settled one way or another is to find the Electra. If the TIGHAR people think she ended up on Gardner’s Island, then they should be focusing on searching the waters around the island for the plane’s remains.
But Goerner recounted an eyewitness claim that the plane was found during WWII and was deliberately destroyed.