Gabbard, National Archives release documents on search for Amelia Earhart after disappearance

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and the National Archives released documents regarding the search for Amelia Earhart after her disappearance in 1937.

Gabbard posted on X on Friday, "Beginning today, at @POTUS' direction, records related to Amelia Earhart's final flight and disappearance 88 years ago will be declassified and shared with the American people. These records include reports, maps, and other documents tracing Earhart's final journey, her last known communications and location, and the initial search following her disappearance.

"Thanks to President @realDonaldTrump's leadership, a historic initiative is underway to digitize and publicly release these records from across the federal government, including newly declassified files today from @NSAgov. As agencies identify additional files, the new documents will be uploaded to @USNatArchives on a rolling basis, alongside those previously released, at http://archives.gov/ameliaearhart."

The document release comes nearly two months after President Trump pledged to declassify and make public government records related to Earhart and her final flight.

The release includes 4,624 pages that contain Coast Guard messages sent to Earhart, 39, in the days after she and her flight navigator, Fred Noonan, disappeared on July 2, 1937, during her attempt to become the first woman to fly around the world, the New York Post reported.

In a broadcast to Earhart on July 4, 1937, a Coast Guard dispatcher said they were using “every possible means [to] establish contact,” and provided detailed instructions to reach them if she heard the signal.

However, there were no signals detected on Earhart’s plane frequencies. This resulted in concerns that she had crashed her Lockheed 10-E Electra into the waters off Howland Island, midway between Hawaii and Australia, as the massive air and sea search continued, according to the documents.

“Talked Amelia so long now like searching for close friend though most have never seen her some heard her voice,” the choppy July 5, 1937, dispatcher's message said.

“Those who did have great admiration for courage when she called in slow measured words half hour field left no landfall stop not until last message did voice show emotion stop. Unverified here Noonan with Amelia.”

Earhart and Noonan had taken off from Lae, Papua New Guinea, planning to refuel on Howland Island en route to Honolulu and their final destination of Oakland, Calif. However, strong headwinds in Lae forced Earhart's radio transmissions to go silent. 

The U.S. Navy and Coast Guard conducted a 16-day search for Earhart and Noonan without success, and she was officially declared dead on Jan. 5, 1939.

There have been many attempts made and millions of dollars spent over nearly 90 years in search of Earhart, to no avail.