Saipan and the Mystery of Amelia Earhart, Page 2
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While the buildup of Truk as a great Gunko, (naval base) had been kept a closely guarded secret, U. S. naval vessels were prohibited by the Japanese from entering the harbors of the Mandated Islands . By 1937, American naval authorities were becoming increasingly apprehensive of Japan's rearmament and the growing belligerency of its military. So much so that on Thanksgiving Day in 1941, (two weeks before the attack on Pearl Harbor) General Arnold ordered two B-24 aircraft stationed in San Francisco (1) to fly to Manila. While enroute they were ordered to fly over Jaluit in the Marshall Islands and Truk in the Eastern Caroline Islands to photograph the naval installations there and attempt to find out what had been taking place at these locations within the Japanese Mandated Islands.
Did the American military's curiosity about these islands prompt an earlier (1937) request of Amelia Earhart to also attempt to fly over the same islands for the same purpose but from a different direction? Did she do so?
The only serious problem with such a supposition is that a position report received from Earhart while in flight occurred at 5:20 p. m. (Lae time) and indicated her position at 04 degrees - 33 ' south latitude by 159 degrees - 06' east longitude, a fix which would place the aircraft in the vicinity of Nukumanu Island, northeast of Bougainville and in the area where it should have been assuming the original flight plan was being followed.
This fix would place the aircraft on a track from Lae to Howland Island some 742 nautical miles or about one third the distance between the two points which are separated by 2,227 nautical miles. This radioed position is far to the southeast of Truk and almost due south of Ponape (Senyavin Island, now Pohnpei) and north of Guadalcanal. That the transmission was picked up in Lae is strange indeed, since the Electra's radio range was said to be (although not confirmed by this researcher) not much more than 400 miles. If this was in fact true - how is it that the signal was picked up from almost twice the distance? Was it a hoax? Was it a deceptive position directed to confuse any Japanese radioman at Truk who might have been monitoring the much publicized flight path (presumed to be from Lae to Howland) and the radio frequency of 6210 KHz? If so, the report was received at Truk only a short time before the aircraft could have roared over the encircling reef at Truk to carry out its assignment of aerial espionage before turning east to fly toward Jaluit and beyond the International Date Line thence south east to Howland . To intentionally radio a false position with the objective of disguising one's true position is a classic technique of deception. Had a Japanese been monitoring the radio at Truk he could have plotted her position as a result of those coordinates and assumed she was outside the boundary of the Mandated Islands when in reality she could have been only an hour or so flying time south of Truk bearing down on the Japanese anchorage. Then zoom over the lagoon with enough light to observe the base before turning to fly east into the cover of the advancing evening darkness.
On July 2,1937, Earhart departed Lae, New Guinea with Howland Island, as her destination 2,227 n. miles distant on an azimuth of 79.8 degrees - almost due east. The aircraft was to rendezvous with the U. S. Coast Guard Cutter Itasca which had been assigned by the U. S. Government to provide weather information and a directional beacon signal.
Howland is a low island with the highest point not ten feet above sea level. It is located at 00 degrees- 48' north latitude- 176 degrees - 38' west longitude, a mere dot on a Pacific chart.
It is interesting to note that on May 11,1935, Fred Noonan replied to a letter from Navy Lt. Commander, P. V. H. Weems , an authority on aerial navigation , in which Noonan wrote about certain equipment for the planned flight. He stated, "For reasons which I am certain you can understand, we are not permitted to discuss the particulars of the flight for dissemination among the general public." (2)
For some time the aircraft identified as King - How - Able - Queen - Queen had been trying to communicate by radio with the American vessel.
Copyright 2006 nopukob.com
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