Marine robotics company Deep Sea Vision (DSV) has helped unveil what is believed to be the resting place of aviator Amelia Earhart’s Lockheed Electra aircraft.
Amelia’s fate has been the source of speculation and conspiracy theories since her mysterious disappearance in 1937.
The South Carolina based company is led by CEO Tony Romeo, who with his team searched across 5,200 square miles of the Pacific Ocean floor as part of a 90-day search.
The team of searchers used DSV’s HUGIN 6000, an autonomous underwater sonar, having modified the side scan sonar to search nearly 1,600-metre-wide swaths instead of the normal 450 meters.
The changes were made possible by DSV President of Operations, Craig Wallace, who was recruited from the sonar manufacturer to help put the expedition together.
“We’re thrilled to have made this discovery at the tail end of our expedition, and we plan to bring closure to a great American story,” said Tony who worked closely with his brother Lloyd during the search.
They pursed the theory that Amelia’s navigator, Fred Noonan, miscalculated his celestial star navigation by forgetting to turn back the date from July 3 to July 2 as they flew across the Date Line after 17 hours of flying, creating a westward navigational error of 60 miles. DSV has also concluded a yet to be announced project in the Pacific and is currently providing their technology for a longer-term project in Australia.