Happy Friday! I hope that you also had an enjoyable and productive week!
First, apologies for my error in last week's post, especially to my friends down under. The island in the book was between Tasmania and Antarctica, not Tanzania. Oops, I was either geographically challenged or distracted.
Today marks the birth anniversary of Amelia Earhart, the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. Born in 1897 in Atchison Kansas, she was the older of two siblings. They were not raised to be "nice little girls" - they wore bloomers rather than dresses, were adventurous, hunted rats with a rifle, collected various insects, and enjoyed being outdoors. Her father, who worked for the Rock Island Railroad, was transferred to Des Moines, Iowa in 1907 and Amelia (a.k.a. Meely) saw her first aircraft, a biplane, at the Iowa State fair at age 10. She passed up her father's offer to ride in it in favor of the merry-go-round.
Her father was an alcoholic and was in and out of work over the years. Her mother took the two girls to Chicago, and Amelia graduated from Hyde Park High School in 1916. She had an affinity for male-dominated fields throughout her childhood, including law, management, and mechanical engineering. She visited her sister in Toronto in 1917 and trained as a nurse'ser aide with the Red Cross. She contracted the Spanish flu in 1918, was hospitalized with sinus infections (pre-antibiotics) and underwent unsuccessful surgeries, including a drainage tube from her maxillary sinus through her cheek. The infections and surgeries caused debilitating headaches that sidelined her for a year (I had to get the headache part in). She enrolled in a medical studies program and Columbia University, but quit a year later to join her parents in California.
Earhart became interested in flying in the 1920s after going to an air fair in Toronto, prompting her to go to all the air shows she could. Her first plane ride was in Long Beach, California – that 10-minute experience convinced her that she had to fly. A month later, she started taking flying lessons from Anita "Neta" Snook, working several jobs, taking a bus and walking 4 miles to the airfield. She cut her hair short and bough a yellow Kinner Airster biplane 6 months later that she called The Canary. On October 22, 1922, she set the world record for female pilots, taking her plane to 14,000 feet (4,300 meters) and was the 16th women in the U.S. to obtain an international pilot's license.
Her sinus problems continued to plague her, requiring more surgeries, and had to sell The Canary because of financial problems. She drove across the country with her mother to Boston where she finally had successful sinus surgery. She helped finance the Dennison Airport in Quincy, Massachusetts, and flew the first official flight from there.
American heiress Amy Phipps Guest announced her intention to be the first woman to cross the Atlantic by air in 1928. She assembled a team of aviation professionals for her endeavor but abandoned her plans due to family pressure. However, she was committed to the cause and searched for the right candidate to fulfill her mission. Through various connections, Earhart was introduced to Capt. Hilton Raily who asked whether she would like to be the first woman to cross the Atlantic. Earhart couldn't refuse. Although the offer was to ride as a passenger, Earhart negotiated to take the controls for part of the trip, weather permitting.
The plane, Friendship, left on June 3, 1928 towards Nova Scotia, but bad weather and mechanical problems delayed the transatlantic flight under pilot Wilmer Stultz. Navigation was thus instrument-only and non-visual, which Aerhart had no experience with. The aircraft's radio failed early in the flight leaving them incommunicado. After 21 hours, with low fuel levels and limited visibility, they (unknowingly) landed in South Wales. Friendship was taken to Burry Point Harbor, and Aerhart claimed the title of being the first woman on a transatlantic flight. However, she didn't get to fly, and commented that she was "just baggage, like a sack of potatoes...maybe some day I'll try it alone." Upon her return to the U.S., she was dubbed "Queen of the Air", went on a lecture tour and took on several endorsements, including on for "active living" at Macy's, promoting simple, wrinkle proof and feminine women's clothing.
She then flew solo across North America and back and started competitive racing. She set a world altitude record of 18,415 feet (5,613 meters) in 1931 and became active in the Ninety Nines (named for the 99 charter members), comprised of female pilots to advance woman in aviation.
She married her public relations manager, George Putman in 1931, in a marriage of convenience. It was an open marriage, allowing them both the independence to do as they pleased with "dual control". She did not change her last name.
Her famous solo transatlantic flight left from Newfoundland on May 20, 1932. The flight lasted 14 hours and 56 minutes. After encountering strong winds, icy conditions and mechanical problems, she landed in a pasture of Northern Ireland, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross from Congress, the Cross of Knight of the Legion of Honor from the French Government and the Gold Medal of the National Geographic Society from President Hoover.
Other solo flights included Hawaii to California and Mexico City to New York. In 1935, she announced her intention to fly around the world "as near its waistline as could be". Meanwhile, Putnam's house burned down, and the couple moved to California.
After her first choice of navigator for this two-person circumnavigation proved to be off the mark, she chose Fred Noonan, experienced in marine and flight navigation as well as pilot navigation instruction for Pan Am. The plan was to head west, with Noonan navigating from Hawaii to Howland Island in the Pacific, and her initial navigator, Henry Manning, continuing with her to Australia, after which Earhart would fly solo. However, the flight never left Pearl Harbor because the plane crashed during the takeoff run.
The second attempt, heading east, left from Miami on June 1, 1937, stopping in South America, Africa, India and Southeast Asia, landing in New Guinea on June 29. With 22,000 miles completed, only 7,000 remained over the Pacific. Earhart and Noonan took off for Howland Island on July 2 for a 20-hour flight. The U.S. Coast Guard sent a ship to provide navigation and support, but navigation methods failed to bring her to Howland Island. The radio transmission was erratic and her plane was estimated to be 200 miles away. At 100 miles away, the plane was low on fuel. Voice transmission was lost and they used Morse code to no avail. Earhart was unable to determine the direction to the ship. The plane disappeared and was presumed to run out of fuel and crashed into the ocean.
Many believe that Earhart and Noonan died during or shortly after the crash. Search efforts by the Navy and Coast Guard continued until July 19. The aircraft is postulated to be 17,000-18,000 feet under water on the ocean floor, but the wreckage was never found. Other theories abound, including conspiracy theories
Earhart was an international legacy during her life, a champion for women an inspiration for a generation of female aviators. Hundreds of books and articles were written about her, a US Liberty ship was named after her, her story has been featured on film and television, her portrait hangs in the National Portrait Gallery, and even Lego produced a limited edition of her plane.
President Trump ordered that all government records concerning Earhart be declassified and released in 2025. An expedition by Purdue University to find her plane was announced today, to begin in October.
Have a terrific weekend!
Deb
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6d2RG2Rl64&t=4s