Hillary Clinton is rooting for the scientists and historians laboring to solve the mystery of legendary American aviator Amelia Earhart, who disappeared in the South Pacific more than 70 years ago, according to Politico. Welcoming members of the The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery (TIGHAR) to the State Department last wee, the secretary of state had words of encouragement to those searching for an answer to the decades-old Earhart mystery. “Even if you do not find what you seek, there is great honor and possibility in the search itself,” she is quoted in the Politico story.
TIGHAR is set to launch a major underwater search in July – as a part of the 75th anniversary of Earhart’s departure from the U.S. – to test the group’s theory that she and her navigator Fred Noonan landed and eventually died on Gardner Island (now a part of the Republic of Kiribati). One of the newest clues is an analysis of a photograph taken just months after Earhart disappeared that shows what some experts believe is the Lockheed Electra’s landing gear sticking out of the ocean, according to The Associated Press.
I imagine that the search will be more successful if TIGHAR looks for a grave site on Saipan. Â I suspect that Amelia was executed there as a spy by the Japanese after overflying and photographing their naval base at Truk. Â But the U.S. Navy probably doesn’t want you to think about that.