I'm new to the forum but not new to the subject (see my intro, and the comments I made concerning "158 338" and my comments concerning prop clearance) but I've been following the discussion the last couple of days...
There still is skepticism about the radio transmission, and that skepticism seems to have influenced the search in the past.
To repeat myself, I flew with shortwave my main connection with my airplanes my office, the boats I was servicing, and other aircraft, here in Alaska, for years before everyone switched to side-band.
Also the FCC, in their wisdom, made us move off of 2512 because it was not an aircraft frequency so we could no longer talk to a boat when it was having a problem and calling for help; I won't go into how many times we saved boats and even lives over the years...we went to 3411 and listened to blueberry pie recipes from the lodges.
Then we all went to Marine VHF and we could all watch out for each other on that
My point is, that sitting in my house in Homer Alaska, I have heard boats in australia...heard a sailboat talking to the radio in Darwin as clear as a bell, for hours...so i absolutey believe Betty, as I said last week.
So tonight I opened google earth and brought up Howland I., took a straight line to Gardner I. , went down that line to the position that Betty repeated *twice*..."309 S" and look where it puts you ....
I don't have a way to measure miles, or to show the heading on the google map
( and I can't find "165 E" (it should be "west" shouldn't it?)
But that's what Amelia said on the radio.. Fred had been injured and was 'out of it'..."309 S 165 E"
I think they were following 158 degrees down from the Howland area and at '309 South' latitude they saw an Island ahead of them and got busy getting ready to land...That much comes out of Bettys notebook; all we have to do is believe her.
If it's too far to see the island from that spot it just means that's the last position they took and then there was land straight ahead.
Has anybody put that on a chart to see where it is?
Fred did the research...all we would have had to do is believe them and go there...
I still have the old late-thirties Stromberg Carlson big radio in my log cabin...just needs about 60 feet of longwire but hasn't been plugged in for about 30 years!
we used to listen to the marine forecast on it.
Bill
Says "Shortwave...Aircraft...Broadcast"
Come see if we can pick up Amelia !?!