The Mystery of Amelia Earhart

The best things of mankind are as useless as Amelia Earhart's adventure. They are things that are undertaken because someone is moved by curiosity, the love of excellence, a point of honor, a compulsion to invent or to understand. In such persons mankind overcomes the inertia which would keep it earthbound forever in its habitual ways. They have in them the free, wild, and useless energy with which alone man surpasses himself. All the heroes, the saints and the seers, the explorers, and the creators partake of it. They do the useless, brave, noble, the divinely foolish, and the very wisest things that are done by men. And what they may prove to themselves and to others is that man is no mere creature of his habits, no mere cog in the collective machine, but that in the dust of which he is made there is also fire--lighted now and then by great winds from the sky.
Walter Lippmann, New York Herald Tribune, July 4, 1937

She vanished nearly 60 years ago, but fascination with Amelia Earhart continues through each new generation. High adventure, the dazzling world of celebrity, and a passion to excel in a male-dominated field are only part of the story. In studying this remarkable woman, teachers should encourage students to look beyond her achievements in the air and the overshadowing last flight. Help them to discover "Millie" Earhart as a complex human being who was witty, intelligent, and deeply caring about people. She wrote poetry and books, penned wonderful letters, and charmed audiences from the lecture platform. She encouraged others--especially young women--to follow their dreams and was tireless in promoting the safety of aviation.

There are countless avenues to her life and times. In addition to books, articles, and visual materials, students can find abundant information--including primary sources--on the World Wide Web. Two good places to began are the Smithsonian and Embry Riddle Aeronautical University.

Here are some suggested activities followed by a fun-to-do linkage exercise.

1. Look up newspaper accounts of Earhart's 1928 flight across the Atlantic as a passenger. Compare press coverage of the venture with news of Charles Lindbergh's solo crossing the year before. Which flight got more attention? Why?
2. Assume Earhart kept a journal after she took off from Lae, New Guinea in July, 1937. Write an entry which reveals why, based on your theorizing from known facts, she and Fred Noonan never made it to Howland Island.
3. Find out about the twin engine Lockheed airplane Earhart was flying when she left Miami on June 1,1937. What was its range and fuel capacity? How many gallons of fuel were used per hour of flight? What navigational equipment was aboard? What kind of radio equipment did the plane carry? Had the plane been tested for its flotation characteristics prior to the flight? Did Amelia and Fred have emergency gear in case of a ditching?
4. Investigate some theories surrounding Earhart's disappearance. Check into books by Fred Goerner (The Search for Amelia Earhart) , Joe Davidson (Amelia Earhart Returns from Saipan) , Paul Briand, Jr. (Daughter of the Sky), Joe Klaas (Amelia Earhart Lives), and Dick Stippel (Amelia Earhart: The Myth and the Reality). Summarize each theory and give your opinion as to which, if any, have credibility.
5. View the 1942 RKO film "Flight for Freedom" (not on home video but watch for it on late-night TV). How closely was the Toni Carter character, played by Rosalind Russell, modeled after Amelia Earhart? Which theory about Earhart's fate does the movie espouse?
6. Earhart was the best known aviatrix of the 1930s--thanks in part to the promotional skills of George Palmer Putnam--but other women of the day made their marks in the sky. Do research and report on Jacqueline Cochran, Bessie Coleman, Jean Batten, Harriet Quimby, Louise M. Thaden, Bobbi Trout, Patty Willis, Marvel Crosson, Ruth Nichols, Blanche W. Noyes, Vera Dawn Walker, Marjorie Crawford, Ruth Elder, and Florence "Pancho" Barnes.
7. What skills and personal qualities were needed to be a pilot in the years between the wars? Do you think it's easier or more difficult to fly a plane today? Give reasons for your answer.
8. During World War II, the US would not permit women to fly in combat. Did any allied or enemy countries allow them to do so? Do you think it was wise for the US to restrict women to non-combat flying? Give reasons for your answer. What is the current policy of the US military regarding women in combat?
9. US airlines employ many women as flight attendants but only a handful as cockpit crew--pilots, co-pilots, flight engineers--even though federal law prohibits discrimination in hiring based on sex. Research United, American, Delta, TWA, and other airlines. Find out how many women pilots each employs. Find out their policy, if any, on increasing flight-crew opportunities for women.
10. Complete the Amelia Earhart links exercise then use the mathematical check to verify your answers are correct.