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Why wasn’t the Electra found when a British
exploratory expedition visited Gardner Island in October 1937, just three months
after the Earhart disappearance? |
It does seem highly unlikely that the aircraft was not seen, but several
factors may have contributed to the fact that it certainly was not recognized
for what it was. Contemporaneous written accounts and photos show that
the party made their landing on the reef just south of the wreck of the
S.S. Norwich City. At that time, the grounded ship was still intact
and thus masked from view the northern portion of the reef edge where the
aircraft wreckage is said to have been located. In a photo taken during
the visit, the material on the reef is visible but not recognizable as
aircraft wreckage. There is no reason to suspect that it would appear differently
to the eye than to the camera. It should also be noted that the two British
Colonial service officers and nineteen Gilbertese delegates who made up
the expedition party probably had no knowledge of the Earhart disappearance
at the time of their three-day visit to Gardner Island. Their purpose was
to assess the island for future settlement and their attention was focused
upon determining whether the island’s soil was suitable for agriculture
and upon digging wells in search of potable water. On the southeastern
side of the island in the same area, where bones were found three years
later, they did come across “signs of previous habitation” described as
looking as if “someone had bivouacked for the night.”
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