Info On Amelia Earheart Plane - Late 2014

Weevil · Guru

Info On Amelia Earheart Plane - Late 2014

iana · Guru

My thoughts are its a bit sus. If it is just a blank for a window, why all the rivet holes. To replace the window you just cut out a piece of Perspex or aluminium and fit it where the old window came out. If how ever the only metal they had at hand was very thin, perhaps they added stringers to stiffen it, and maybe used aluminium or steel pop rivets to fasten. Since they would corrode easily, it could have then come free, maybe that's how the panel washed up there.

iana · Guru

Here's some more pictures. The patch is a lot bigger, than the impression the news article gives. So I'm probably wrong. Still a lot of stringers. If I was to guess, I would say its the hatch above the ****pit, then all the holes would be frames to make the hatch conform to the shape of the roof area. It also would be most likely to have come free.

Weevil · Guru

According to the picture on the link it was at the rear, see;

Amelia-Earhart patch.jpg

iana · Guru

Yes, if you look at the picture I put up of the cutaway drawing of the aircraft, you can see that there are big full tanks installed in the passenger cabin, and behind that is a navigators table. One of the crew would have to crawl over the tanks to get to the table.
My thoughts on this now after studying many pictures on the net, is that this "window" was an emergency escape port. i.e. there was probably a small axe or something to smash the Perspex window so they could escape if they ditched at sea. None of the standard Electra's had this window so far back and such a big window as well.
The puzzle is that the window was removed in Miami, and why was that.
I just think its odd that there are no rivets on this metal, the holes where stringers would have been riveted seem to be twice the number looking at another picture. I would have thought that if the rivets had have corroded away, a couple of heads would still be attached to the panel.
What ever, they were sitting on a bomb, if those tanks were empty when they went down. One tiny spark and the tanks would have blown sky high. Which could explain the panel and its ragged edges. I am open minded that its Amelia-Earhart-in-the-aft-cabin-on-the-Lockheed-Electra-10E-fuel-tanks-and-radio-.jpg a hoax.

Looks like they may have sucked the tank in at some stage as well.

Shaggy Dog · Member

Weevil.

The amount of rivets would indicate a structural item such as the pilots escape hatch.

The torn edge could be where latches or hinges were attached.

If opened in flight the hatch may have been torn away from the fuselage. It is possible the aircraft came apart in flight for whatever reason.

Unlikely pop rivets would have been used at that time. The grades of aluminium would possibly have been dissimilar between hatch skin and rivet which would promote corrosion due to different alloys especially if exposed to a marine environment.

The blank on the rear window could have possibly been fitted to allow the fitment of interior nav equipment. Chart rack etc, as it was obviously not needed as a window. Tank installation maybe.

Most ferry tanks are rather lightly built as they are often utilised for one trip only, some distortion is possible from suction and general use and abuse.

All speculation at this distance, geographically and time wise, of course.

I'm retired Weevil, please refrain from piquing my curiosity.

Take it easy.

SD

-- Edited by Shaggy Dog on Saturday 30th of May 2015 11:32:50 PM

-- Edited by Shaggy Dog on Saturday 30th of May 2015 11:46:03 PM

Weevil · Guru

Thanks for the feedback Shaggy, you too iana, obviously both of you have knowledge of airframes etc, I don't, all I know is it goes up and it goes down, sometimes safely, sometimes not hmm

iana · Guru

I think its a hoax. Its perhaps a panel removed during repair during ww2 on another aircraft and used as a publicity stunt.
Looking at the picture of the Electra taking off with the supposed panel installed, it looks a bit jiggered on the aircraft, and I think I can see part of the original window below it still installed. They say it was a hurried repair and no record exists of it having been done. It may have been just cardboard taped over the perspex to stop the sun beaming in while parked and the left it on, to come off on its own accord during flight.
On the cut-away picture you can see a yellow box stashed against a rear bulkhead, I think that would have been a life raft and rations, and the window was that size so the box would fit through.

Anyway it stirred up my interest while it lasted.