Did They Find Amelia Earhart's Plane in 2024?

Aviator Amelia Earhart was a trailblazer in the world of flight, inspiring generations with her daring achievements. As the first female pilot to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, she became a symbol of perseverance and courage in aviation.

Earhart wrote books, lectured, dabbled in fashion and engaged in activism. While her main passion was aviation, she became known as a modern American renaissance woman, plucky and brilliant.

Before her tragic and mysterious disappearance, she was a celebrity; since then, she's been an enduring legend.

Amelia's plane, a Lockheed Electra 10E Special, was specially outfitted for her fateful attempt at circumnavigation of the globe.

She and her navigator, Fred Noonan, began their journey in Oakland, California, stopping first in Miami before publicly announcing the trip (an earlier attempt had been scrapped due to technical difficulties).

After completing most of the journey, they disappeared over the central Pacific Ocean on July 2, 1937. While their approximate location can be deduced from their planned flight path, the exact circumstances of Amelia Earhart's journey's end remain a mystery.

Despite extensive search efforts at the time, no confirmed wreckage of her aircraft was ever found. Over the years, the Amelia Earhart Hangar Museum and numerous researchers have worked to piece together clues to uncover what really happened to one of the world’s most famous pilots.

In early 2024, reports surfaced about a sonar image captured by a company called Deep Sea Vision, revealing what looked like an aircraft resting on the ocean floor. Many speculated that this could finally be Earhart’s Lockheed Electra, lost somewhere near Howland Island in the vast Pacific Ocean.

The discovery was made by Tony Romeo, an Air Force intelligence officer turned explorer, who believed it could be the long-lost wreckage of Earhart’s plane. The possibility of finally solving the Earhart mystery sent waves of excitement through the aviation and scientific communities.

The location of the sonar image — near Howland Island — lined up with the last known coordinates of Earhart’s flight. This led to speculation that after decades of searching, historic aircraft recovery experts might finally have tangible evidence of her final resting place.

As investigations continued, experts analyzed the sonar image in detail, comparing it to known aircraft structures, as well as the specs for Earhart's Electra.

Deep sea explorers and oceanographers conducted follow-up studies, and what they found was disappointing: The object was determined to be a natural rock formation, rather than an aircraft.

This revelation was a major setback for those hoping to solve Amelia Earhart’s disappearance. While sonar images can sometimes resemble man-made objects, closer analysis often reveals natural explanations.

The search for Earhart’s plane continues, as new technologies and research methods keep the hope of finding her historic aircraft.

We created this article in conjunction with AI technology, then made sure it was fact-checked and edited by a HowStuffWorks editor.