Amelia Earhart Photo: wiki commons
US President Donald Trump says his administration will declassify and release all federal records relating to the disappearance of aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart, a move that could bring clarity to one of the world's most enduring mysteries.
"I have been asked by many people about the life and times of Amelia Earhart, such an interesting story, and would I consider declassifying and releasing everything about her, in particular, her last, fatal flight! She was an aviation pioneer, the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, and achieved many other aviation 'firsts,'" Trump posted on social media.
Trump added that the aviatrix "disappeared in the South Pacific while trying to become the first woman to fly around the World. Amelia made it almost three-quarters around the World before she suddenly, and without notice, vanished, never to be seen again. Her disappearance, almost 90 years ago, has captivated millions."
Trump said he is ordering his administration to declassify and release all government records related to Amelia Earhart, her final trip, and everything else about her.
Earhart, the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, vanished in 1937 while attempting to circumnavigate the globe. Nearly nine decades later, her fate remains unresolved, with theories ranging from a crash at sea to her alleged capture in the Pacific.
The announcement has stirred deep interest in the Northern Mariana Islands, where oral histories and eyewitness accounts have long suggested Earhart may have been held on Saipan before her death.
Remi Sablan of the Saipan Amelia Earhart Monument Association welcomed the development, crediting CNMI Congresswoman Kimberlyn King-Hinds for urging Trump to act.
"A lot of people still here in Saipan don't believe Amelia Earhart was here, but there were eyewitnesses when the investigation was going on," Sablan said. "In court, they honor eyewitnesses. I don't know why people still question us. Let it rest."
An undated photo from the 1930s shows Amelia Earhart in Essonne, France. Photo: AFP
King-Hinds, in her letter to Trump, said the CNMI had a unique stake in uncovering the truth.
"In my district, the story of Amelia Earhart carries particular weight. A number of elderly residents still recall her presence in the Pacific, with some sharing credible, firsthand accounts of having seen her on Saipan," she wrote.
She added that the possible existence of unreleased U.S. records could "contribute meaningfully to our understanding of one of America's most revered aviators and finally shed light on the final chapter of her remarkable life."
The Congresswoman likened the effort to Trump's earlier moves to declassify files relating to the assassinations of John F Kennedy, Robert F Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr.
For Earhart's supporters in the Pacific, the promise of disclosure has renewed hopes that her story - and Saipan's possible place in it-will at last be fully told.
