Earhart expedition update: Crew arrives at Tarawa, prepares for departure

TARAWA, Kiribati — Fourteen members of the Taraia Object expedition — the Archaeological Legacy Institute, Purdue Research Foundation and Purdue University’s joint expedition to explore a Pacific island lagoon for Amelia Earhart’s missing plane wreckage — arrived Tuesday (Oct. 6) at Tarawa, Kiribati, the expedition’s staging area. After linking up with the expedition’s three Kiribati representatives on Tarawa, the team is now complete and ready to begin the sea voyage to Nikumaroro, a remote atoll halfway between Australia and Hawaii.

The team arrived at approximately 10 a.m. local time following a flight from Nadi, Fiji, where they had spent a day on briefings and training activities. Tarawa is 16 hours ahead of Eastern time in the United States. Team members spent their first day in Tarawa managing logistics, checking equipment and meeting with officials of the Kiribati National Shipping Line ahead of their planned departure at 3 p.m. local time on Wednesday (Oct. 7).

Earhart team departs

Members of the Taraia Object expedition team at the airport en route to Tarawa.

Earhart team departs

Expedition team members Rick Pettigrew and Marc Hagle point out Nikumaroro on a large map.

Earhart team departs

Steve Schultz (left) poses for a picture with fellow expedition team members Ren LaRocca and William Wilson.

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“Even today, given its sheer vastness, there’s something significant to flying over the Pacific Ocean,” said Sirisha Bandla, expedition member, Purdue alumna and member of the Cradle of Astronauts. “As we finally arrived at our point of departure here in Tarawa, it struck home that we’d flown over a majority of the portion that Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan were attempting to traverse when they were lost. Now we hope to have a chance to bring closure to their story.”

“Moving a team of this size — and with this much equipment — halfway around the world is a huge logistical feat,” said Steve Schultz, Purdue’s senior vice president and general counsel. “Even when you think you’ve done enough planning and preparation, everything has to fall into place once you’re underway. The amazing thing is that it has been a series of small victories. Customs, logistics and other details we’ve sweated over for months now all came together in rapid succession over the past three days.” 

Next, the crew will depart Tarawa, by sea, for the longest leg of their journey to Nikumaroro in the Phoenix Islands of Kiribati. The team will sail six days and is expected to arrive at Nikumaroro on Oct. 13 and then spend the following days on the small island in the search effort.

The expedition is being supported by Columbia Sportswear, DHL Express, Fiji Airways, Kiribati National Shipping Line, the Niswonger Foundation, Bulova and RECON Offshore, along with additional organizations providing financial, operational, logistical, technical, philanthropic, diplomatic and in-kind support, including Alvantor, Arrants Expeditions, Brownie’s Third Lung, Forestry Suppliers, GreenGood Labs, The Museum of Flight, the Naval Aviation Museum Foundation, Randolph USA, and Tricor.

About Archaeological Legacy Institute

Archaeological Legacy Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Eugene, Oregon, and organized to share the human cultural heritage widely through the use of cutting-edge media technology. ALI’s core project is The Archaeology Channel (http://www.archaeologychannel.org), a free streaming-media website featuring video and audio programs on archaeology, indigenous peoples and cultural heritage. This combines with news site Archaeologica.org, the social media site ArchaeoSeek.com, and subscription video-on-demand platform Heritage Broadcasting Service (heritagetac.org) to form a unique constellation of online services and resources for those keen to learn about and enjoy cultural-heritage information, events, programming and discussions. Through The Archaeology Channel Tours, ALI also organizes in-person group visits to significant cultural heritage sites worldwide, which have included Stonehenge, Machu Picchu, Chichén Itzá, Uxmal, Newgrange, Persepolis, Carnac, the Ness of Brodgar, the Malta prehistoric temples and many others.

About Purdue University and Purdue Research Foundation

Purdue University is a research institution ranked among the top 10 public universities in the United States. The Purdue Research Foundation (PRF) is a private nonprofit operating as a separate entity to advance the university’s mission. Purdue is committed to affordability and accessibility with more than 111,000 students studying at Purdue across multiple campuses. PRF operates Purdue Innovates, including the Office of Technology Commercialization, Incubator and Ventures, as well as managing Purdue Research Park, Discovery Park District at Purdue, Purdue Technology Centers and the Purdue for Life Foundation.