A PNG young man's discovery in remote village may hold clue of missing America's aircraft - Amelia Earhart

by ALFRED KANINIBA - PNG Loop

TIMOTHY Joe Aiap, a 23-year-old West New Britain man in Papua New Guinea will be famous for his discovery of the America's war plane that went missing decades ago. Timothy may have accidentally stumbled across a 100 year old aviation mystery with his discovery of the remains of an aircraft which may have been Amelia Earhart’s missing aircraft.

Timothy hails from Urin village high in the Whiteman’s Range on the South Coast of Kimbe in Kandrian District of West New Britain decided to track his mountainous land when, after three nights spent sleeping in the jungle he happened upon the wreckage of a plane crash.

The discovery was made on December 3, 2015.

“In the wreck I discovered information which include radio receiver, plane type and human bones.”

Aiap said the American logo is designed with a star in the middle with five feathers on the sides with the word Lockheed written on the top of the Logo.

He added that other information he has found from the wreck is the name of the plane which is “Aircraft Burbani” and is small and red in colour and is a two engine plane. 

The plane is manufactured by the Lockheed Corporation in California. Aiap said a small box was also found and written on the box is “Signal Corp U.S Army Radio Receiver BC-647-A Serial No: 11145 Order No. 160 WFSCPD -42, made by Philco Corporation – Pennsylvania.

“We have also found human remains inside the plane and different part of the plan have their own serial numbers which I have taken photos of,” Aiap said.

Aiap who discovered this wreck is positive it is the plane that the first female pilot Amelia Earhart was piloting when it crashed in 1937.

The mystery of the disappearance of the world’s first and famous woman pilot Amelia Earhart had been flying on a solo flight around the world. 

Acepilot.com says the solo-flight started on May 21, 1937 from Oakland, California, in the recently repaired Lockheed Electra, she and her navigator, Fed Noonan.

After relatively short flights to Burbank, California, and Tucson, Arizona, they next touched down in New Orleans, and then Miami where the airplane was tuned-up for the long trip. From Miami, they flew through the Caribbean, to an enthusiastic welcome in San Juan, and then to Natal, Brazil, for the shortest possible hop over the Atlantic, although, at 1727 miles, it was the longest leg of the journey that they completed safely.

They touched down in Senegal, West Africa; then eastward across Africa (via the dusty Sahal outposts of Gao, N'Djamena, and El Fasher) to Khartoum and then Ethiopia. From Assab, Ethiopia, they were the first to make an Africa-to-India flight, touching down in Karachi (then part of India), a 1627 mile leg.

From Calcutta, India they flew to Rangoon, Bangkok, and then Bandung, in the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia). Monsoon weather prevented departure from Bandung for several days. Repairs were made on some of the long distance instruments which had given trouble previously. During this time Amelia had become ill with dysentery that lasted for several days. After a stop in Darwin, Australia, they continued eastward to Lae, New Guinea, arriving there on June 29.

According to Acepilot.com, Amelia Earhart had flown from Darwin on June 28-29 and arrived in Lae, New Guinea. By this time she had flown 1,012 nautical miles. In Lae repairs were made to the “direction finder and parachutes sent home.”

According to Acepilot.com, “Her next destination was Howland Island, 2200 miles away, the longest over-water leg of the trip. To aid in radio communications, the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Itasca was stationed off Howland Island. The Lockheed Electra took off from Lae at 0:00 Greenwich Mean Time. 8 hours later she called in to Lae for the last time. At 19:30, Itasca received the following:

"KHAQQ calling Itasca. We must be on you but cannot see you...gas is running low..."

An hour later, the last message came in:

"We are in a line position of 157- 337. Will report on 6210 kilocycles. Wait, listen on 6210 kilocycles. We are running North and South."

“Ironically Amelia Earhart has become more famous for disappearing than for her many real aviation achievements. It sparked a whole cottage industry of conspiracy theorists and "researchers." There are two main themes to these ideas. One, her around-the-world flight was a cover for a spy mission, commissioned by President Roosevelt to determine what the Japanese were up to in the Pacific. Two, she and Fred Noonan weren't simply swallowed up by the vast Pacific Ocean, but were captured by the Japanese. Obviously these two main themes work well in combination.

No evidence has ever been found to support either one of these ideas. But a lack of facts has not dissuaded these researchers.

In March, 2011, as part of the never-ending search for Amelia Earhart's remains, researchers examined the DNA of bones found on Nikumaroro, and determined that they might or might not be remains of the famous aviatrix. In fact, the researchers could not even state with certainty that the small bone fragments in question were human.

Amelia Earhart left a rich legacy; she continues to be an inspiration, not only to women, but to all who seek to explore and push their own limits and the world's boundaries. Several schools across the country have been named in her honour.

Meanwhile, Aipa is hoping to meet with the Tourism Promotion Authority to seek help to make the site a tourist attraction.