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#41
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On Thu, 13 Jan 2005 06:51:22 -0500, Cub Driver
wrote: She seems to have been not only courageous, but competent aeronautically too. Probably a better pilot than I am, but not in the league she was playing in. I don't know whether it was her own ambition or her husband's, but she shouldn't have been on that trip. It isn't an either/or situation. Both she and her husband wanted her to succeed in her round-the-world flight. In all likelihood, the original plan would have worked perfectly, if she hadn't crashed on takeoff from Luke Field in Hawaii on the second leg. In the original plan, she was accompanied by Paul Mantz, Harry Manning, and Fred Noonan. The flight plan was from California westward around the world. Mantz and Nooning were aboard to help find Howland Island on the second leg of the trip. They were both highly skilled radio operators who could have communicated with the Itasca even if they had faced the same radio problems Amelia and Fred did on the second attempt to reach Howland. As I recall, she was basically just a passenger on her first big flight, to Europe from North America. True. She resented that fact, but that's how the trip was planned by a rich lady whose family prevented her from being the first woman flown across the Atlantic. And, like Howard Hughes, she crashed a suspiciously large number of airplanes in circumstances that either weren't challenging or were of her own choosing. You may well be right. I don't have the data at my fingertips. Here is a summary dialogue on that point: ******************* Begin quoted material ***************** From Dennis McGee: I just finished reviewing the TIGHAR recap of AE's performance over the last 16 years of her life, and my immediate reaction was, "Who licensed this person to fly?" Ye gads, man, she had 11 (ELEVEN!) accidents or "events" with the aircraft she owned from 1921-37, and this does not include losing the Electra 10E in July, 1937. Some of the stuff was minor, but a lot of it wasn't. There is even a reprimand from the CAA (?) tucked into the file! Granted, certain hazards of the era (poor airfields, fuel contamination, lack of nav aids etc.) may have been contributing factors, but pranging a half dozen aircraft in nine years (1928-37) is a pretty dismal record. I know my FBO wouldn't rent to her! Most of the events appeared to be landing mishaps (" . . .pilot in command failed to maintain control of the aircraft after touchdown . . .."), some of which could have been caused by poorly maintained airfields, I assumed. Only two, apparently, were due to mechanical failure, specifically the engine, which speaks well for the reliability of engines even at this early point in aviation. I noticed also a general correlation between the number of accidents and the complexity (in this case "complexity" is near-synonymous with engine power, as generally the more powerful the engine the more complex [cowl flaps, constant speed propeller, retractable landing gear, etc.] is the airplane.) of the aircraft, the more complex the aircraft, the more accidents. All of which raises two observations: first, it appears her flying skills -- or at least her landing skills -- left a lot to be desired; and last, is her record "average" for the pilots of her era or was she just a victim of bad luck? LTM, who always lands on concrete Dennis O. McGee, #0149 ****************************** From Ric Gillespie [TIGHAR's executive director] Amelia's atrocious landings were, apparently, legendary. Scott Berg's new (and excellent) biography of Lindbergh includes what may be the only joke that the dour hero ever told - "I hear that Amelia Earhart made a good landing - - once." Whether she had more wrecks than the average 1930s pilot is a difficult question to answer. The average pilot probably wouldn't get the chance to have that many accidents because they wouldn't be able to afford to keep flying. http://www.tighar.org/forum/Highlights21_40/highlights24.html ************ End quoted material **************** Pushing the envelope is admirable, but in Earhart's case it seemed to be mostly for publicity for herself and her husband. Agreed. But that is how she and her husband earned a living. Fame allowed her to keep flying. I have lots and lots of puritan instincts, some held in check better than others, but I am not a puritan when it comes to stunt flying. If some folks can earn a living entertaining others, more power to them (especially in the vertical lines). Marty |
#42
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On Thu, 13 Jan 2005 06:51:22 -0500, Cub Driver
wrote in :: On Wed, 12 Jan 2005 15:55:08 GMT, Larry Dighera wrote: She seems to have been not only courageous, but competent aeronautically too. Probably a better pilot than I am, but not in the league she was playing in. I don't know whether it was her own ambition or her husband's, but she shouldn't have been on that trip. As I recall, she was basically just a passenger on her first big flight, to Europe from North America. And, like Howard Hughes, she crashed a suspiciously large number of airplanes in circumstances that either weren't challenging or were of her own choosing. Pushing the envelope is admirable, but in Earhart's case it seemed to be mostly for publicity for herself and her husband. In the message to which you are following up, Message-ID: , we are discussing Jean Batton, another aviatrix of the time, not AE. With regard to AE, I agree with your assessment from what I've read. However, I'd guess that here motivation was not only for her own personal publicity, but for that of the majority of the world's population: women. Earlier in the thread, Marty also mentioned the motivation of money as a possibility. |
#43
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In all likelihood, the original plan would have worked perfectly, if she hadn't crashed on takeoff from Luke Field in Hawaii on the second leg. That's one of the Hughes-like crashes that I had in mind! When I started skiing, I used to think that if I spent a day with falling down, I wasn't trying hard enough. Now I'm a better skier, and I figure that if I fall down I screwed up somehow. I think Earhart at her death was still in the falling-down stage of her piloting career. Military pilots (and civilians too!) often cope with a fellow pilot's death by saying "He ****ed up!" Sure, it's rationalization. But sometimes it's true. -- all the best, Dan Ford email (put Cubdriver in subject line) Warbird's Forum: www.warbirdforum.com Piper Cub Forum: www.pipercubforum.com the blog: www.danford.net |
#44
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On Thu, 13 Jan 2005 10:24:44 -0500, "Martin X. Moleski, SJ"
wrote: From Dennis McGee: I just finished reviewing the TIGHAR recap of AE's performance over the last 16 years of her life, and my immediate reaction was, "Who licensed this person to fly?" Good stuff. Thanks. (Suspicions confirmed -- all the best, Dan Ford email (put Cubdriver in subject line) Warbird's Forum: www.warbirdforum.com Piper Cub Forum: www.pipercubforum.com the blog: www.danford.net |
#45
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On Fri, 14 Jan 2005 05:42:58 -0500, Cub Driver
wrote: In all likelihood, the original plan would have worked perfectly, if she hadn't crashed on takeoff from Luke Field in Hawaii on the second leg. That's one of the Hughes-like crashes that I had in mind! Yes. When I started skiing, I used to think that if I spent a day with falling down, I wasn't trying hard enough. Now I'm a better skier, and I figure that if I fall down I screwed up somehow. AE fell down a lot. Ric Gillespie says that every time she moved up in type, she crunched an airframe or two. To her credit (?), she got right back in the cockpit and eventually mastered each aircraft. Her takeoff from Lae on the fatal flight was as masterful as the takeoff from Luke Field was poor. It took a lot of courage to sail off the bluff and let the plane sink down into ground effect. TIGHAR believes it wasn't her basic piloting skills that cost her and FN their lives. It was their joint lack of communication skills that kept them from finding Howland. I think Earhart at her death was still in the falling-down stage of her piloting career. You've got a good prima facie ("first glance") case for your view. She and Fred died. That wasn't in the flight plan. ( I think she had many falling-down stages. What killed her was lack of skill in RDF and CW (Morse Code). She thought she could get by with radiotelephony. That had worked on all of her other flights. It didn't work when she needed it most. Military pilots (and civilians too!) often cope with a fellow pilot's death by saying "He ****ed up!" Sure, it's rationalization. But sometimes it's true. Yes. She and her support crew chose to put her on the fatal flight with what proved to be inadequate equipment and training. If I ever get a chance not to make the same mistake, I'll do my best not to make it. ( Marty |
#46
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Military pilots (and civilians too!) often cope with a fellow pilot's
death by saying "He ****ed up!" Sure, it's rationalization. But sometimes it's true. I would change the "sometimes" to "usually." vince norris |
#47
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On Wed, 12 Jan 2005 03:24:23 -0500, Cub Driver
wrote in :: As for the govt assistance, that was standard for the time. That conflicts with Mr. Goerner's account. |
#48
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On Fri, 21 Jan 2005 13:15:59 GMT, Larry Dighera
wrote: On Wed, 12 Jan 2005 03:24:23 -0500, Cub Driver wrote in :: As for the govt assistance, that was standard for the time. That conflicts with Mr. Goerner's account. Earhart was a friend of the Roosevelts (and other highly placed administration officials) before she decided to attempt the around-the-world flight. Putting in an airstrip on Howland served a number of purposes: 1. To help AE. Good publicity is good politics. 2. To strengthen U.S. claims to the island by developing it. 3. To provide an emergency airstrip that others might use. 4. To provide jobs. The airstrip was a WPA project. 5. To prepare a potential military base for use against the Japanese. I'm not denying Goerner's account that there was a general policy against helping stunt pilots stretch the envelope. I'm saying that there are exceptions to every rule (except this one) and that we may imagine an exception was made in this case for good and sufficient reasons. Marty |
#49
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On Fri, 21 Jan 2005 09:44:13 -0500, "Martin X. Moleski, SJ"
wrote in :: On Fri, 21 Jan 2005 13:15:59 GMT, Larry Dighera wrote: On Wed, 12 Jan 2005 03:24:23 -0500, Cub Driver wrote in :: As for the govt assistance, that was standard for the time. That conflicts with Mr. Goerner's account. Earhart was a friend of the Roosevelts (and other highly placed administration officials) before she decided to attempt the around-the-world flight. Putting in an airstrip on Howland served a number of purposes: 1. To help AE. Good publicity is good politics. 2. To strengthen U.S. claims to the island by developing it. 3. To provide an emergency airstrip that others might use. 4. To provide jobs. The airstrip was a WPA project. 5. To prepare a potential military base for use against the Japanese. I'm not denying Goerner's account that there was a general policy against helping stunt pilots stretch the envelope. I'm saying that there are exceptions to every rule (except this one) and that we may imagine an exception was made in this case for good and sufficient reasons. Right. And might you not also infer that the construction of the airfield on Howland Island, the assignment of personnel to communicate her flight, and the use of Navy ships virtually exclusively for her flight bolsters Mr. Goerner's conclusion that she may have been on a secret mission for the US government? |
#50
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"Larry Dighera" wrote in message
... Right. And might you not also infer that the construction of the airfield on Howland Island, the assignment of personnel to communicate her flight, and the use of Navy ships virtually exclusively for her flight bolsters Mr. Goerner's conclusion that she may have been on a secret mission for the US government? Weren't "picket ships" common "back in the day" as remote comm outlets? Sort of like light ships but for comm over long open stretches? Jay Beckman PP-ASEL Chandler, AZ |
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