Did Amelia Earhart survive crash/captured by Japanese?

KingstonsMom · ‎03-09-2010

A newly unearthed photograph suggests that Amelia Earhart did not perish at sea back on July 2, 1937, when the famed female aviator vanished from the sky after sending a number of troubling transmissions.

It has long been believed that poor visibility and low gas levels caused the plane to crash in the waters near Howland Island that day, claiming the lives of the 39-year-old pilot and her navigator Fred Noonan.

That theory is now being put to the test however as a result of this never-before-seen image that appears to show both Earhart and Noonan in the Marshall Islands, with a note on the image placing

them at the Jaluit Atoll.

Earhart's plane can also be seen on the far right being dragged by a large ship.

The image is believed to have been taken in 1937, the same year that Earhart went missing in the vicinity of the island chain.

It is a bittersweet discovery however, as the photograph also confirms the long-held belief that Earhart was captured by the Japanese and held as a prisoner of war, this according to experts who will appear on the History special 'Amelia Earhart: The Lost Evidence,' airing this Sunday.

The Japanese government stated that they have no record of Earhart ever being a prisoner.

In the image, Earhart has her back to the camera and is seen speaking to Noonan as they prepare to board a boat.

The faces of the two cannot be seen, but their profiles do bear a striking similarity to the pair, who were close to finishing out their goal of circumnavigating the globe.

It is believed that the photographer was a US spy or emissary operating behind enemy lines in the Pacific.

He was later executed for committing treason according to reports.

A facial recognition expert said that it is likely Earhart and Noonan in the photo, which was discovered in the National Archive by retired federal agent Les Kinney.

The authenticity of the photograph has also been confirmed by experts.

What remains unclear however is how Earhart would have been able to crash land the plane and then get from her destination to the Jaluit Atoll, which is 1021 miles away from Howland Island.

She would have quickly been taken captive at that point along with Noonan, as Japan had begun to prohibit Westerners from entering their territories by that time.

It has been a theory of many over the years that Earhart died on Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands while being held by the Japanese.

The cause of death is believed to have been Malaria or dysentery, which claimed the American icon's life in 1939, just two years after she went missing over the Pacific.

You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.

hoosieroriginal · ‎03-04-2012

I think it is just another conspiracy theory - we will never know what happened. Those pictures are so grainy, they prove nothing - you can't even see the person she is supposedly talking to. Like all conspiracy theories, people want to believe different from what really happened.

momtochloe · ‎11-03-2013

Thank you for posting this @KingstonsMom as I was just going to do the same. For those that may be interested The History Channel will run a special on this Sunday night at 9ET/8CT for those may be interested.

http://www.history.com/specials/amelia-earhart-the-lost-evidence

tansy · ‎01-02-2011

It does look like that could be Amelia. I need to record the History Channel show.

Plaid Pants2 · ‎03-14-2015

I saw the story on the "Today Show", and they are theorising, (nothing has been definitively 100% proven beyond a shadow of a doubt yet), that Noonan, is on the far left of the photo, and they think that may be A.E. sitting with her back to the camera, and they think that might be her plane over on the far right.

qualitygal · ‎10-04-2010

My husband already set this up to record. He told me about this. Could be interesting.

tansy · ‎01-02-2011

Did anyone hear an explanation as to why this photo suddenly appeared?

momtochloe · ‎11-03-2013

@Plaid Pants2 wrote:
I saw the story on the "Today Show", and they are theorising, (nothing has been definitively 100% proven beyond a shadow of a doubt yet), that Noonan, is on the far left of the photo, and they think that may be A.E. sitting with her back to the camera, and they think that might be her plane over on the far right.

@Plaid Pants2 I know there is a lot of room for speculation and to be honest I do not see Noonan anywhere in that photograph but the image of the woman circled does very much resemble AE but for me the thing that kind of jumped out was that image on the far left of the photograph that does resemble a plane. I very much look forward to this special on Sunday just to see how they sort through this new data.

momtochloe · ‎11-03-2013

@tansy wrote:
Did anyone hear an explanation as to why this photo suddenly appeared?

@tansy I hope this is one of the things that are addressed in the History Channel special.

tansy · ‎01-02-2011

@momtochloe wrote:
@Plaid Pants2 wrote:
I saw the story on the "Today Show", and they are theorising, (nothing has been definitively 100% proven beyond a shadow of a doubt yet), that Noonan, is on the far left of the photo, and they think that may be A.E. sitting with her back to the camera, and they think that might be her plane over on the far right.
@Plaid Pants2 I know there is a lot of room for speculation and to be honest I do not see Noonan anywhere in that photograph but the image of the woman circled does very much resemble AE but for me the thing that kind of jumped out was that image on the far left of the photograph that does resemble a plane. I very much look forward to this special on Sunday just to see how they sort through this new data.

I don't see Noonan either.