New Search For Missing Amelia Earhart’s Plane Planned

A new search for the missing plane of Amelia Earhart will be conducted next month.

The International Group For Historic Aircraft Recovery have confirmed that they will make a return expedition to Nikumaroro, which is located in the Pacific ocean, as they search for further evidence of Earhart’s aircraft.

The team will consist of 14 individuals, and the Niku VIII expedition will cost $500,000. According to Newser, they will set off for Fiji on June 8, and it will then take them five days to reach Nikumaroro.

Once they’ve arrived, they will spend two weeks searching for evidence of Amelia Earhart’s plane. Earhart is believe to have crashed on Nikumaroro on or around July 2, 1937, as she tried to fly around the globe in her Purdue-funded Lockheed Model 10.

They will conduct three search operations. One of these will focus on the water near the island, another will stay onshore and use metal detectors to scour the land, while the last is a botanical survey that will examine what Earhart could have eaten and survived on when she crashed on the island.

The onshore search will look for “signs of an initial survival camp” that Amelia Earhart might have set-up. Eight locations on Nikumaroro that they believe could have been Earhart’s camp have already been highlighted.

A five person scuba team will also swim and look in shallow waters for evidence, while a small, remotely-operated vehicle will go into deeper waters and use sonar equipment to search.

According to M Variety, the team will be joined by 60 passengers from the M/V Fiji Princess for the Betchart Expeditions Amelia Earhart Cruise for the final four days, and Dr. Tom King, who is a senior archaeologist, as well as four experienced members of the team, will host lectures and guides.

The team plan to arrive at Nikumaroro on June 13, while they will eventually depart on June 26, arriving back in Fiji on July 1.

[Image via Depression In The Sky]