British pilot 'finds location of Amelia Earhart's lost plane' using Google Earth
A pilot believes he has found the whereabouts of explorer Amelia Earhart's lost plane.
The Brit claims that it was all thanks to Google Earth, following news that scientists had found the same thing.
Earhart was a trend-setter of her time, becoming the 16th woman to earn her aviation license, having set her goals on becoming a pilot as a child.
On 1 June 1937, Earhart set out for a 29,000-mile journey from California across the world, looking to pass Central and South America, Africa, and Australia before crossing the Pacific Ocean.
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A month into the journey, she set off from New Guinea towards Howland Island, with the goal to complete the 20-hour flight in one go.
While her and navigator Fred Noonan were being helped by the US Coast Guard to find the island, they were lost and would never be seen again.
It was theorised that Noonan didn't consider them crossing the International Date Line in his predictions, with the celestial navigation method requiring the exact date and time to work.
This means that they may have ended up 400 miles from their intended destination.
The most expensive sea and air search in American history at the time resulted in no findings, though researchers revealed early last month that they believed they found something that was 'the same shape' as Earhart's plane on the island of Nikumaroro in Kiribati.
Purdue University are now looking to send a team out to the island in November, almost 90 years since they funded Earhart's flight, after the 2015 image was taken following a tropical cyclone which moved the sand.
Captain Justin Myers, who's been a pilot for 25 years, is confident that he knows the exact location of Earhart's crash, thanks to Google Earth.
He believed that the shapes he found over three years ago were parts of the plane, matching the sizes of parts on Earhart's Lockheed Electra 10E.
Myers also recognised that Earhart and Noonan crashed on the east cost of Nikumaroro Island, albeit using his own DIY method.
While previous investigations have uncovered items such as improvised tools and bits of clothing, Myers has developed an interest in Nikumaroro Island.
"Poor sleep, upper wind predictions not being accurate, probably fatigue and some anxiety would likely have played a part in the disappearance," he said in a blog post.
"As a pilot, I thought to myself, if I was in Amelia's position trying to find a needle in a hay stack low on fuel and to be honest if we were in her position no doubt using some choice language, where would I force land my Lockheed Electra 10E?"
When scouring the island on the app, he zoomed into a 'dark coloured perfectly straight object' on the island's east coast, measured at 12 metres, which is the same length as the plane Earhart used.
He then found a 'perfect half exposed radial engine measuring 4-4.5ft in diameter', as well as a wheel.
While excited, Myers can't be certain that the debris belongs to Earhart and Noonan, though he is sure of the model.
"The bottom line is, from my interests from a child in vintage aircraft and air crash investigation, I can say that is what was once a 12-metre, 2-engine vintage aircraft. What I can't say is that is definitely Amelia's Electra," he added.
"If this is not Amelia's Electra 10 E, then it's the answer to another mystery that has never been answered."
While Myers wants to launch an expedition to investigate these objects, he has heard nothing back from Purdue University, the National Transportation Safety Board in the US, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, and the air crash investigation team in Brisbane.
Topics: Google Earth, History, Travel
Joshua Nair