Pacific Seaplanes WW-II Historical Background :Amelia Earhardt and navigator Fred Noonan Disappear

The Amelia Earhardt Disappearance

Amelia Earhardt and navigator Fred Noonan,

in attempting to complete a round-the-world flight in July, 1937, had left New Guinea for a radio relay ship near Howland Island, a final leg before reaching Hawaii. Only a final radio message indicating difficulty in contacting the ship was heard before the plane disappeared without a trace. A massive search was unable to

recover even the smallest piece of a crash.

While some have doubted Earhardt's skills, she was a very experienced pilot with several long-distance Atlantic and Pacific solo water crossings. With her was an experienced veteran Pan Am navigator who had flown with chief Pan Am pilot Edward Musick. The curious factors are that their flight took them through prime Japanese Navy operational areas and Earhardt's arrival in Hawaii would have been July 4, America's main holiday, and a symbolic touch Imperial Japan would have certainly noted.

Historical Background : How the 1930's led up to Japan and the U.S. at War

Historical Background : How the 1930's led up to Japan and the U.S. at War The Amelia Earhardt Disappearance Amelia Earhardt and navigator Fred Noonan, in attempting to complete a round-the-world flight in July, 1937, had left New Guinea for a radio relay ship near Howland Island, a final leg before reaching Hawaii. Only a final radio message indicating difficulty in contacting the ship was heard before the plane disappeared without a trace. A massive search was unable to recover even the smallest thread of crash evidence.