Lecture - "The Final Flight of Amelia Earhart”

Amelia Earhart legacy was about her mysterious disappearance in the Pacific and what she achieved in her short life. Born in Kansas in 1897 and was a “tom boy” from a young age, in 1917 trains as a nurse, 1920 takes a flight and becomes the 16th woman to ever have an international pilot license. Lindbergh first broke many records, and did a NY-Paris flight and wrote a book (WE), making him Amelia’s inspiration. Amelia wrote a book “20 Hours 40 minutes” about crossing the Atlantic. She marries and builds a career as a solo pilot breaking lots of records and uses her being fame as a platform for woman’s rights working alongside the First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. On May 20,1932, she decides to do a solo flight across the Atlantic. Leaves Newfoundland, Canada across the Atlantic and lands in a pasture in Derry, Ireland (first place she found land).

She intended to fly Around the World, crossing the Atlantic and the Pacific (which no one ever did). In her first attempt, she left with 2 other pilots for a month plan with one leg a day. Leg 1: CA-Honolulu in 16 hours. Leg 2: was to Howland Island but a tire blew out and damaged the plane, so it ended there.

Second attempt in 1937. This time Amelia only took one person, a navigator and decided to fly Eastward this time as close to the equator as possible. Very much on plan she got to the last 3 legs which included 2556 miles from New Guinea to Howland Island (once again, but coming from the other direction). They lost an antenna so could not communicate long distance. They flew 18+ hours and it was cloudy and needed to land soon. From a ship close to Howland, they last heard her saying “We are flying the line 337157” “We are circling but can not hear you” and it seemed, they were desperately looking to land. She indicated where she was but possibly too far North or South to find Howland Island to land on. She disappeared. The Navy searched for months to find her but so hint of her was found. Sadly, at 41 years old, with such a promising career ahead of her, she was pronounced dead.

The mystery continues. In 1940, on Gardner Island, a remote place in the Pacific Republic of Kiribati, 13 skeletal were found, including a skull and long bones, were found, along with a woman's shoe and a navigational toolbox and could have been hers but could not be proven. One other theory was that they were spies for the US that the Japanese captured. There are many other theories like she disappeared on purpose to escape the limelight. Although this case is almost 100 years old, it is still under intense investigation with many theories of what could have happened each time new evidence at sea is found. What will not change, whether they find out whatever happened to her or not, is that she paved roads for other woman pilots in Countries all over the World and she will be remembered for her bravery to pave new worlds.Læs mere