Earhart mysteriet - Ny ekspedisjon - AVweb

 

New Expedition Aims To Locate Amelia Earhart’s Lockheed Electra

Researchers are launching an expedition to investigate a possible aircraft wreck spotted in satellite imagery that may be Amelia Earhart’s missing aircraft.

Amelia Walsh

Thursday, July 03, 2025

 

Eighty-eight years after Amelia Earhart vanished over the Pacific, the Purdue Research Foundation (PRF) and the Archaeological Legacy Institute (ALI) announced a new effort to solve one of aviation’s greatest mysteries: the fate of Earhart’s Lockheed Electra 10E.

Set for November 2025, the “Taraia Object Expedition” aims to investigate whether an object spotted in satellite imagery off the remote Pacific island of Nikumaroro could be the Lockheed Electra 10E aircraft Earhart piloted. The object lies in a lagoon where evidence suggests the aircraft may have ended its journey after a forced landing.

“What we have here is maybe the greatest opportunity ever to finally close the case,” said Richard Pettigrew, ALI’s executive director, in a July 2 press release. “With such a great amount of very strong evidence, we feel we have no choice but to move forward and hopefully return with proof. I look forward to collaborating with Purdue Research Foundation in writing the final chapter in Amelia Earhart’s remarkable life story.”

Evidence cited by ALI includes a photographic anomaly known as the Bevington Object, possible landing gear seen on a 1937 reef image; bone fragments found on the island in 1940 that forensic analysis links to Earhart; and 1930s-era artifacts including a woman’s shoe, cosmetic jar and medicine vial. Additionally, historic radio bearings from the U.S. Navy, Coast Guard and Pan Am triangulate to the island’s vicinity.

Purdue University’s connection to Earhart remains uniquely significant. She served as a visiting adviser and counselor to female students, while then-President Edward Elliott championed her mission. The Purdue Research Foundation funded her specially outfitted Electra through the Amelia Earhart Fund for Aeronautical Research. According to records, Earhart intended to donate the aircraft to Purdue for use in aeronautics research upon her return.

To support the effort, PRF has committed $500,000 toward the first phase of the expedition. Should the evidence warrant, a full recovery mission is planned for 2026.