Parachutes

Earhart and Noonan picked up two Irvin parachutes in Port Darwin, Australia on June 28, 1937. "Last Flight" says they left the parachutes behind in Port Darwin, but that's wrong. A contemporary newspaper account makes it clear that the 'chutes were collected in Darwin. From Finding Amelia:

"The correspondent for the Sydney, Australia, newspaper who was present for the Electra’s arrival in Darwin told a different story: 'The first thing she did after being officially welcomed was to inquire if parachutes, part of the emergency equipment for the Pacific crossing in front of her, had arrived from America. They reached here more than a week ago. . . . Fully tested and ready for immediate use, the parachutes were waiting in Mr. Collins’s office.' (Alan Collins was the civil aviation officer for Darwin.) Earhart made no mention of the parachutes in her press release, but a photograph taken that day shows her and Noonan in front of the Electra’s cabin door with what appears to be a pile of items about to be loaded aboard the airplane. Two parachutes are clearly visible" (65).