She was called the queen of the skies. She was the first woman to make a successful flight over the Atlantic, later breaking new records. But it was still not enough for her. She decided to go around the globe. Everyone waited with bated breath for the grand finale, which ... did not happen. On the final straight, Amelia's plane seemed to dissolve into thin air. After 80 years, the mystery of her disappearance was to be solved by a certain photograph.
Legendary aviation pioneer, journalist, fighting for women's rights. Amelia Earhart, because we are talking about her, was the first woman in the world to cross the Atlantic Ocean by plane. This secured her fame and allowed her to develop her aviation career.
She has achieved many records and decorations on her account. In the 1930s, she had the status of a fearless idol. She has been hailed as the "queen of the skies" . This encouraged her to break another record. She was the first woman in the world to fly around the world.
However, this did not happen. Probably her plane fell into the Pacific. After weeks of searching, she was pronounced dead. Eighty years after the catastrophe, the topic has returned thanks to a photograph that allegedly shows Earhart and her navigator. Is the mysterious disappearance resolved?
Icarus dream
Amelia Earhart was born on July 2, 1897 in Atchinson, United States. Her childhood was carefree. She grew up in the house of well-to-do grandparents. Her grandfather was the president of a local bank and a federal court judge.
Little Millie, as she was called at home, was quite a teasing kid. She broke all the prohibitions, climbed trees and took care of any reptiles and amphibians that she managed to catch. She later went to high school and then enrolled in medical studies at Columbia University in New York City. She also recruited to help at the Red Cross Hospital in Toronto.
It was in Canada that her love and passion for flying were born. She visited the aviation exhibition with friends. Watching the machines soaring into the air, she felt that this was what she wanted to do in life - to fly. She decided to devote herself entirely to her new passion.
"Millie" turned out to be a teasing child, because against the wishes of her parents, she dropped out of medical studies. She also changed her appearance. She cut her hair and dressed differently.
Again, "Millie" turned out to be a contradictory child because against her parents' wishes she dropped out of medical studies. She also changed her appearance. She cut her hair and dressed differently . Of course, she modeled herself on other pilots who were her authority at the time. There was only one problem. Where to get the money for the pilot course?
Parents, reluctant to the whole idea, were not eager to finance such an expensive training. So Amelia had to go to work. She took many classes to collect the right amount. With the help of her mother, who finally added the missing sum, Millie began her flying course in March 1921.
Queen of the skies
Two years after getting her license, Amelia quit flying. She moved to Boston, began teaching English and writing columns for the local newspaper. The monotonous life in April 1928 was interrupted by a surprise phone call to join the "aviation event of the decade." Amelia received an invitation from Charles Lindbergh to fly with him over the Atlantic Ocean. Agreeing to this venture meant a great chance for Amelia to pursue a future aviation career, but it also entailed a huge risk, which she decided to take nevertheless.
The Friendship, as the Fokker F VII was called, took off from the Newfoundland airport in June 1928. On the second day, after 20 hours and 40 minutes of flight, the machine landed on the coast of Wales. It meant the job was done. The press began to write about this flight. Mainly because of Amelia, who was the first woman to cross the Atlantic by plane. Admittedly, she was not a pilot - her job was to keep a log - but for many people she became a real hero.
Earhart became involved in women's rights activities, becoming the president of an organization associating female pilots around the world.
After that, Earhart resumed flying, this time leaving behind several records. She made, inter alia, crossing the Atlantic to the Pacific and back, and also covered the distance from New York to California. In addition, became involved in women's rights activities, becoming the president of an organization associating female pilots around the world. The fight for women's rights had another dimension. Earhart often defended her gender in relation to negative comments that questioned their flying skills, for example. To prove that women are as good as men, Earhart decided to fly over the Atlantic once again, this time as a pilot.
On May 20, 1932, Amelia Earhart took off from the Newfoundland airport. She took the morning newspaper on board, which was to prove that she had completed the task. After less than 15 hours of flight, a single-engine Lockheed Vega piloted by Amelia Earhart landed on the Culmore pasture in Northern Ireland.
The original destination was Paris, but unfavorable weather conditions and technical problems forced Earhart to land elsewhere. It didn't matter, though, since was the only woman to cross the Atlantic alone. The world went crazy about her, she was a star. The press wrote about it in superlatives. She received the medal of the French Legion of Honor and the medal of the United States Congress. A parade was organized for her in New York. It was on everyone's lips, thus taking away the arguments of the skeptics of her talent.
Last Flight
Fame only encouraged Earhart to continue flying and breaking new records. In 1935 she crossed the Pacific. This meant that there was only one record left to beat - a flight around the world. Such a feat was performed twice by the Wiley Post, which flew around the globe in 1931 and 1933. Earhart wanted to be the first woman to do this.
After collecting the appropriate funds and preparing the equipment On June 1, 1937, Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan took off - as it turned out later - on their last flight . On June 29, they landed in New Guinea, where they were scheduled to rest and prepare for the worst part of their journey. Most of the tour was already behind them. Last straight left.
The plan to get to the United States was very risky. Earhart was scheduled to make a stopover on Howland Island in the Pacific Ocean. Due to the fact that it is a small island and it is hard to notice, American ships were stationed nearby, which were supposed to signal the location of the island.
In 1935 she crossed the Pacific. This meant there was only one record left to break - a flight around the world.
July 2 at 7:42 Earhart reported running out of fuel. The weather conditions were terrible. A strong wind was blowing, additionally it was raining. Not all messages were received, so they began to communicate using Morse code. At At 8:43 the radio started working again and Noonan announced the plane's location. It was the last message…
The plane was lost near the Phoenix Islands. A rescue operation was immediately launched, in which nearly 4,000 people took part. people. After two weeks of searching, nothing was found. On January 5, 1939, Earhart and Noonan were pronounced dead.
Mysterious photo
Long after Earhart was gone, the press kept writing on the subject, sustaining more conspiracy theories and rumors. They all boiled down to the fact that the pilot survived. Some talked about faking death and settling in a quiet province in the middle of the United States. Others claimed that Amelia had become a US spy in Japan.
One of the most popular theories was that of a mysterious desert island. Many believed that Noonan and Earhart lived like Robinson Crusoe. With time, the rumors ceased and it was increasingly said that the plane simply crashed due to lack of fuel and the prevailing weather conditions.
In 2017, 80 years after the crash, the topic resurfaced with a mysterious photograph obtained by former FBI employee Shawn Henry. According to him, the photo shows Earhart and Nonnan, as well as the plane on which they were flying. That would mean they survived the catastrophe.
Many believed that Noonan and Earhart lived like Robinson Crusoe.
According to Henry, they were captured by the Japanese and died in captivity a few years later. To prove his theory, Henry traveled to the Marshall Islands. There he allegedly spoke to the only man alive who claimed to have witnessed the landing of the plane Earhart flown. This was denied by the Japanese government. No information about Amelia was found in any prisoner register. Japan did not occupy these islands at the time.
At the same time, the international history society TIGHAR sent tracking dogs to the island of Nikumaroro. The animals found, among others aluminum pieces of the plane, the broken knife that Earhart had on board, pieces of the cockpit made in Pennsylvania, and a lady's shoe. It is difficult to identify if the items belonged to a pair of airmen.
TIGHAR historians do not believe in Henry's research. Especially in the published photo, which they claim has been known to them for years. Researchers agree that it does not show a pair of aviators. Several other experts are of the same opinion. This means that the mystery of the mysterious disappearance is still unsolved.