Katharina Buczek
This incredible feat and the pride that came with it pushed Amelia to publish yet another book entitled The Fun Of It before undertaking countless more flights throughout the United States.
Amelia’s Final Flight
By 1937, Amelia had already accomplished so much. She became the first pilot to fly solo from Hawaii to California, as well as from Los Angeles to Mexico City.
Still, that year, she intended to fly around the world with navigator Fred Noonan. Sadly, no one knew this would be the last time the world ever saw or heard from Amelia again.
On June 1, she and Fred departed from Miami and began the twenty-nine thousand-mile journey headed East across the globe.
Over the next twenty-eight days, the pair made numerous stops to refuel before finally reaching Lae, New Guinea, on June 29.
Then, on July 2, Amelia headed toward Howland Island– which was about two thousand and six hundred miles away. This leg of the journey was expected to be challenging, but the pair set out anyway.
However, toward the tail end of their flight, Amelia contacted the U.S. Coast Guard via radio and reported that her twin-engine Lockheed Electra plane had begun running out of fuel.
Then, about one hour later, she also radioed, “We are running north and south.” That was the last time anyone ever heard from Amelia or Fred again.
The twin-engine was believed to have gone down about one hundred miles from their island destination, and an extensive search was launched to locate the pair.
But, on July 19, 1937, authorities called off the investigation and declared both Amelia and Fred lost at sea.
