Recent Discovery Sheds Light On Amelia Earhart's Final Words To Her Husband

In July of 1937, in the skies over the South Pacific, legendary aviator Amelia Earhart neared the end of her record-breaking round-the-world flight. But as she approached Howland Island, a tiny scrap of land hidden beneath the clouds far below, something went wrong. What exactly prevented Earhart from reaching her destination? We can’t be sure. However, recent developments shed light on her mind frame right before she began the last leg of her mysterious flight. 

Defying gender norms

Back then, Earhart was one of the world’s most celebrated women, admired for her heroics and bravery at a time when traditional gender roles still dominated society. And for years, the press had followed her glittering career as she broke boundaries and took risks — but always lived to tell the tale. 

The hunt continues

This time, though, Earhart would not be so lucky. When it became clear the aviator had not made it to Howland Island, a massive search was launched. And more than 80 years later, the hunt continues. So what really happened that day? And will the whole truth ever be uncovered?

Amelia Earhart’s final words

For decades, amateur sleuths and experts alike have debated Earhart’s ultimate fate. Less attention has been paid to who she was as a person and the legacy that she left behind. But now her final words to her husband George have been discovered, and they shine a light on one of history’s most enigmatic figures.

A household name

By the time Earhart embarked on her round-the-world flight, she was already a household name. Passionate about aviation from a young age, she had enjoyed her first brush with fame in 1928 as the first woman to cross the Atlantic in an airplane. She had only been a passenger that time, but it was enough to establish her reputation as a trailblazing adventurer.

Biggest challenge yet

Then Earhart faced her biggest challenge yet. For more than a year, she had been planning to fly all the way around the world — a distance of some 29,000 miles. Others had circumnavigated the globe before, but she would be the first woman to attempt it — and on a route longer than any of the previous endeavors.

Ambitious stunts

What exactly was the appeal of this ambitious venture? Earhart came from a wealthy family, and so she didn’t need to engage in daring stunts to succeed in life. Perhaps one clue can be found in a famous quote attributed to Earhart — a quote that remains popular to this day. 

You can do anything you decide to do

“The most difficult thing is the decision to act. The rest is merely tenacity,” Earhart is reported to have said. “The fears are paper tigers. You can do anything you decide to do. You can act to change and control your life, and the procedure, the process is its own reward.”

Solo across the Atlantic

Earhart was certainly tenacious, if nothing else. Four years after her trip across the Atlantic, she decided to make the journey alone, becoming the first woman to fly solo across the same ocean. And in 1935 she broke another record with a one-woman flight over the Pacific from Hawaii to California.

The world was becoming smaller

Yet Earhart’s real challenge was still to come. By 1937 she had settled into the role of adventurer, providing inspiration for women who dreamed of breaking free from society’s expectations. But the world was also becoming smaller, and opportunities to undertake impressive, headline-worthy feats were fewer and further between.

First attempt

So Earhart planned her most ambitious flight yet, beginning in Oakland, CA, and traveling all around the world. On March 17, 1937, she took off on her first attempt with two navigators, Fred Noonan and Harry Manning, and a technical advisor on board.

Technical issues

Planning to follow a route from east to west, Earhart completed the first leg of her adventure, landing in Honolulu, HI, later that same day. But her aircraft, a specially modified Lockheed Electra 10E, ran into some issues. That took the plane out of action for several days. Eventually, though, the crew were ready to resume their flight, heading for Howland Island some 1,900 nautical miles away. 

Disaster strikes

Sadly, Earhart and her crew never made it. While attempting to depart Honolulu, their plane got stuck in something known as a ground-loop, leaving it spinning wildly instead of taking off into the air. This left it badly damaged, and the craft needed to be sent back to California to be repaired. The adventure, it seemed, was over before it had truly begun.

Pilot error?

But Earhart was an experienced pilot. So what had happened? According to Doris Rich, who published a biography of the aviator in 1989, a blown tire may have caused the plane to spin. But Paul Mantz, the stunt pilot who was acting as technical advisor, believed that the pilot herself had been at fault. 

Second attempt

Earhart was soon ready for a second attempt, in any case, collecting the repaired Electra in Oakland and flying it to Miami. This time, she planned to circumnavigate the globe from west to east, with Howland Island being towards the end of the trip instead of the beginning. By this point, her crew had dwindled to just one.

Set to be a success

Frustrated with the delays, Manning had abandoned ship, leaving Noonan, who was not an experienced radio operator, as the sole navigator. But Earhart pushed on regardless, taking off from Miami towards San Juan in Puerto Rico on June 1. And this time, the adventure looked set to be a success.

South America

Free from the teething problems that had dogged her earlier attempt, Earhart arrived without incident in San Juan, departing again on June 2. And for the next 40 days, she made her way steadily eastwards around the globe. After Puerto Rico, she traveled on to South America, stopping in Venezuela, Suriname, and Brazil.

Heading east

The pilot then set off across the Atlantic, flying for over 1,700 miles before touching down in Saint-Louis, Senegal. And after making her way across eastern Africa, she landed in Karachi, then part of British India, on June 15. Next, it was on to Burma and Siam — now Thailand — before eventually arriving in the former Dutch East Indies.

Darwin

For a while, it looked as if Earhart’s plan would again be derailed. As a monsoon hit the islands, the aviator was struck down with dysentery, forcing her to delay her next departure. But on June 28 she was ready to take to the skies once more, covering some 450 miles to Darwin, northern Australia.

A fateful decision

There, Earhart and Noonan took the opportunity to regroup, calling in technicians to repair an issue with the Electra’s navigation equipment. Reports claim they’d also decided to ditch the emergency parachutes and raft they were carrying, hoping to lighten their load. Depending on which version of events you believe, it was a decision they may well have lived to regret.

Letters home

As Earhart inched ever closer to her goal, she penned letters to her husband and kept diary entries detailing her adventures across the globe. And when she did not return from her endeavor, George made the decision to publish these in the 1937 book Last Flight. Thanks to these documents, we have been able to build up a clearer picture of how she was feeling at the time. 

Lae

As the trailblazer took off from Darwin and arrived in Lae, New Guinea, she must have felt a great sense of satisfaction. Having covered some 22,000 miles, there were just 7,000 more to go, taking her first to Howland Island then on to Honolulu and Oakland, CA. Perhaps she’d been putting it all in her diary or even another letter to George. 

Howland Island

Before Earhart could celebrate, though, she had to complete the final legs of her journey — including the most challenging section so far. From Lae, she needed to cover a distance of more than 2,500 miles to Howland Island, where she was scheduled to arrive on July 2. And once there she would have to navigate her Electra towards a tiny speck of land in the Pacific Ocean — hardly something she could write about on this occasion!

USCGC Itasca

To help Earhart make the landing, the U.S. Coast Guard ship Itasca was positioned off Howland Island, ready to guide the aircraft in. Equipped with a variety of navigation tools, it should have proved a vital asset for the operation, particularly in the days before satellite and GPS. And sure enough, as the aviator approached, her transmissions came through loud and clear.

Gas is running low

In fact, the pilot’s transmissions were so strong on board the Itasca that the crew felt sure her aircraft must be overhead. When they looked, however, they could see nothing but clouds. And according to the ship’s log, the aviator was growing increasingly concerned. Reportedly, she radioed, “We must be on you but cannot see you. Gas is running low.”

Silence

Less than an hour later, Earhart transmitted another message to the Itasca, describing her flight path as she attempted to approach Howland Island. Due to technical difficulties, though, the ship was not able to make itself heard. Its crew could only watch and wait for the Electra to arrive — a moment that sadly never came.

Disappeared without a trace

Neither Earhart nor Noonan was ever seen again. Their plane ran out of fuel somewhere above Howland Island, crashing into the Pacific and sinking in the deep water. That’s according to the official version of events, anyway. And despite extensive search efforts by a number of ships and planes, no trace of the aircraft was ever recovered.

The stuff of legend

With no wreckage — and no clear idea of what had transpired on board — the crash soon became the stuff of legend. And over the years many have speculated as to what happened to Earhart that fateful day. Did she really perish in the Pacific Ocean? Or did she suffer an entirely different fate? 

Gardner Island

According to some theories, Earhart and Noonan gave up on Howland Island after struggling to land on the remote outcrop. With fuel running low, they instead searched for an alternative location, eventually reaching the Phoenix Islands some 350 nautical miles to the southeast. Here, the story goes, they landed on Gardner Island, known today as Nikumaroro.

Castaways

Some believe Earhart and Noonan survived for a while as castaways before eventually succumbing to exposure, starvation, or some other grisly fate. For those who had known and loved the aviator, it must have been a concept almost terrible to bear. But after her disappearance, a letter was discovered that no doubt served as some comfort to those still mourning her loss.

Quite aware of the hazards

In the letter — one of several penned by Earhart during her final flight — her last words to her husband George are revealed. And they hint at a woman who was prepared for anything — even if her adventure didn’t quite go as planned. Tellingly, it began, “Please know that I am quite aware of the hazards.”

Women must try to do things as men have tried

“I want to do it because I want to do it,” Earhart continued, effectively silencing those who may have questioned her motivation for such a dangerous trip. “Women must try to do things as men have tried. When they fail, their failure must be but a challenge to others,” she added.

What became of Amelia Earhart?

So Earhart had always known there was a chance her mission might fail — and wanted to inspire others to follow in her stead. But what really became of the famous aviator and her trusted companion? Over the years, evidence has emerged in support of various theories, although none have been conclusively proven.

Different theories

For those who believe the official version of events, the lack of plane wreckage has done little to change their minds. And it makes sense that nothing has been found, as the waters off Howland Island are 18,000 feet deep in places. Yet that hasn’t prevented others from searching in alternative locations — from Gardner Island to the Marshall Islands some 870 miles away.

A strange discovery

Not long after Earhart’s disappearance, reports claim, search parties spotted evidence of habitation on Gardner Island. Then, in September 1940, newly arrived settlers stumbled upon a human skeleton and a box containing a navigation tool. At the time, experts deduced that the bones likely belonged to a man — but the discovery still boosted the legend connecting the famous aviator to this remote place. 

Aluminum sheet

Eventually, in 1988, The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery, or TIGHAR, launched an expedition to Gardner Island in search of Earhart’s plane. Over the years since, they have completed ten similar trips, uncovering a variety of evidence along the way. As well as makeshift tools, the team found sections of aluminum and plexiglass that they believe could have come from a 1930s Electra. 

Mystery solved?

And according to TIGHAR’s Ric Gillespie, the evidence is overwhelming. Having discovered a photograph that shows Earhart’s Electra fitted with an aluminum panel, he is convinced that that artifact found on Gardner Island came from the same plane. But others believe the sheet of metal was from another craft — and that the mystery is far from solved. 

Captured by the Japanese

Another theory suggests that Earhart and Noonan actually landed in the Marshall Islands, then controlled by Japan. At the time, relations with the States were tense, and some believe this may have prompted the authorities to capture rather than rescue the famous aviator. In any case, it seems many locals believe this story.

Marshall Islands

According to Smithsonian, authorities even issued a series of stamps depicting Earhart’s plane crashing on the Marshalls. And in his book Amelia Earhart: The Truth at Last, researcher Mike Campbell amassed multiple testimonies from witnesses who claimed to have seen the aviator on the islands. Along with her navigator, he claims, she was taken to Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands, where she was imprisoned and ultimately died.

An unlikely end

There’s even a theory that Earhart did not disappear at all, instead living out her days as a housewife in New Jersey under an assumed name. But this may seem an insult to her adventurous spirit and determination to take risks, defying the gender stereotypes of her day. In her last words to her husband, we see a woman who would never back down from a challenge — even one that could lead to her demise.

Not the only history maker

For that reason, Amelia Earhart will forever be remembered as a trailblazer — one who’s served to inspire millions with an indelible legacy of courage and strength. And while several other brave women have also managed to make aviation history since Earhart, teenager Juliane Koepcke may just have the most impressive story. You see, she plummeted 10,000 feet in a plane and lived to tell the tale.

Life or death decision

Juliane was knocked unconscious, at the complete and total mercy of the storm as her tiny plane spiraled towards the dense jungle below. When she came to, somehow alive, a new mission not on her initial travel itinerary crystallized: find mom and find rescue — or die.

Juliane's journey

In 1971, German citizen and respected South American bird researcher Maria Koepcke planned a holiday vacation with her 17-year old daughter, Juliane. Leaving from Peru, their itinerary was simple — but it turned completely deadly.

Family time

Maria (left) planned to meet up with her husband (right) for Christmas, so she booked tickets on the Peruvian airline Lineas Aéreas Nacionales S.A., or LANSA. A time before Yelp and Google reviews, the ornithologist didn't know the airline's reputation.

Bad omen

See, during the '60s and '70s, LANSA was the fastest way to travel from one Peruvian city to another; however, despite offering frequent flights, the airline was plagued with fatal mishaps.

Infamy

In 1966, for instance, LANSA Flight 501 careened into a mountain, killing all on board. A few years later, LANSA Flight 502 crashed. Of the 100 passengers, only one survived, and the crash took the lives of two more people on the ground.

Winter flight

Yet, even with its history, LANSA was still the go-to airline. In December 1971, Flight 508 took off from the capital city of Lima. With a small crew and less than 100 passengers — including Maria and Juliane — the takeoff went as planned.

Lightening strikes

But any hopes of a safe trip were dashed just 40 minutes into the flight, when the small plane flew into a thunderstorm. Suddenly, a bright light lit up the aircraft — lightning had struck the fuel tank!

Free fall

The right wing of the plane broke away as passengers let out screams. Christmas gifts and luggage were sent flying into the storm as the pilot lost the last bit of control. The plane nosedived. Juliane and Maria held each other tight.

Her last moments

In an interview with BBC's Outlook, Juliane vividly remembered the crash. Her mother said, "That is the end, it's all over." Then, tragically, her daughter was ripped from her side as Juliane's seat was pulled from the carriage. She flew into the storm before plummeting to the earth. Everything went black.

Rare luck

When Juliane awoke, she found herself still strapped to her seat — and completely alone. She was alive...somehow. It seemed the dense jungle had broken her fall, enough to allow her to survive. She took stock of her injuries.

Search party

Her collarbone was broken, and there were deep wounds along her legs and arms. Even worse, with her glasses lost in the crash, the near-sighted Juliane had to navigate with bad vision. Her first instinct was to locate her mother.

Different approach

Juliane called out, but the only sounds she could hear were that of the jungle. She had to think of a new plan. If she could find help, then maybe they could locate her mother and any other survivors.

Education pros

Wearing only a short, sleeveless dress and sandals, Juliane tried to shake away any fears. After all, she had spent over a year with her family at a research center in the Amazon. She wasn't a stranger to the Peruvian jungles, so she pulled from her knowledge.

Survival skills

Because her sight was limited, Juliane used her sandal to strike the ground before her in an effort to scare away any dangerous creatures. Half-blind, she stumbled into the crash site, where she searched for any food or water. The only thing she could find were some candies.

Jungle landscape

So, she kept moving. After finding a creek, Juliane stayed in the waters and followed it downstream, a safer approach than staying on land. During the day, the sun burned her. At night, she froze. But she had a strong will to survive.

Birds of prey

On the fourth day, Juliane recognized the sounds of a king vulture. She knew from her parents' research that from the predator bird, a large mass of dead flesh was nearby. Juliane was horrified when she saw what the birds had noticed.

Unmarked graveyard

The crash site. Passengers were still strapped to their seat, but unlike Juliane, the fall had rammed them into the ground, headfirst. Juliane got close enough to see that her mother was not among them. She continued on, her injuries getting worse.

Hopes and dangers

Maggots were all over her wounds, causing infection, and, on the 10th day, as she wandered into a river, Juliane questioned her sanity. Up ahead, she saw something that truly didn't make sense.

Good fortune

There was a motor boat in the near distance, docked along the riverbank. A mirage, she thought. Who would live out in the dense Peruvian jungle? As she neared the boat, however, she realized it was very real. Her stomach turned. Did she want to meet the owner?

A move for help

Desperate and nearing death, Juliane investigated. After finding a small path, she found a hut with a gasoline can nearby. She remembered her father had used gasoline on the wound of a family pet once, which gave her an idea.

Gasoline

The pain was sharp as Juliane sucked gasoline out of the can and tried to clean her wounds as best as she could. Exhausted, she passed out right there in the hut, unaware she was crashing an occupied home.

The boatmen

The next morning, local boatmen discovered her in the hut, bloody, covered in maggots, and smelling like gasoline. They were frightened, believing her to be a water spirit from their folk tales.

Reunion

Weak, Juliane talked to the boatmen in the little Spanish she knew. Thankfully, they understood. The men did their best to treat her wounds, and, after a seven-hour boat ride, brought Juliane to a hospital. When she finally saw her father, they hugged in silence.

Survivor's guilt

After a rescue party found Maria Koepcke's body, Juliane learned her mother had indeed survived the plane crash but for only a few days. Juliane is still haunted by what her mother's final days must have been like. No one fared well in the Amazon.

Experiences

Juliane kicked her own experience around in her head. Was there something she could've done differently to save her mother? The teenager managed to escape with her life and proved she had the gut instincts to survive the impossible. Even more impressive, she revisited the site of her near-death experience years later.

Epic survival story

Seeing the same Peruvian jungle again, this time, through adult eyes, was surreal to Juliane. Film director Werner Herzog documented her harrowing story in the documentary Wings of Hope. Fans couldn't believe that Juliane managed to survive the jungle let alone the 10,000-foot fall.