Reviewing Flyguy's post:
Yes, the flight got very close to Howland Island. But the flight overflew Howland and after searching, the flight turned south in hopes of finding one of Phoenix group. Noonan was familiar with the National Geographic expedition at Canton only three weeks earlier and thought help might still be there. The Itasca never transmitted a homing signal the flight could use. Couldn't see smoke...no sense in searching further. Kelly Johnson said the aircraft had the necessary endurance and could fly to the Phoenix group.
Yes the Japanese presence in the Marshalls was limited and didn't build up substantially until the war started. But to believe the pro-Axis Japanese would not be survelling whoever and whenever they could doesn't make sense. Only a small party of radio experts on Nikumaroro would be necessary to pick up the conversations of the HMS Wellington and USS Avocet at Canton and later the faint signals of Amelia's radio from Orona.
Yes Amelia was a pacifist and would never be involved in spying. The Orona theory is not about AE spying, it's about her being accused of spying ..a Hoax by the IJA...to influence the IJN.
Earlier in the thread someone noted that it would take dozens, perhaps 100's of dead men to keep the spy hoax and AE's capture secret. That's exactly what happened at Roi-Namur and at Saipan. The Japanese soldier.. very determined and a tenacious fighter..only a few surveyed out of the thousands in the defending garrisons. The Marines killed them all.
And reviewing Tom's post - you seem to know little about aircraft and the events of the day - first of all Kelly Johnson didn't design the Model 10, it was designed by Hal Hibbard and Lloyd Stearman, Kelly suggested some design changes to the tail when the aircraft was placed in a wind tunnel, aside from this, what's your point? The fact that the Ithaca picked up a strong LF radio signal PROVED beyond a shadow of a doubt that the aircraft was close to Howland and in one of Earhart's transmission she said they were
low on fuel killing any theory that she was anywhere else in the Pacific. The fact that Kelly Johnson "SAID" the aircraft had the range to make the Phoenix group is irrelevant, BTW, Kelly Johnson didn't even have a pilot's license during this period!!! Kelly Johnson would have had to be clairvoyant as well as a brilliant engineer to know their fuel situation was they neared Howland!!!
FACT - Earhart made it close to Howland and was low on fuel (Possibly 4 hours at about 120 mph groundspeed depending on winds)
FACT - She was heard transmitting on her radio at a time when she probably ran out of fuel or landed her aircraft
FACT - (I'll repeat) The closest Japanese garrison was 800 miles away
FACT - The state of US/ Japanese relations in 1937 were not hostile
The only significant event that strained US/ Japanese relations at this time was the USS Panay incident which occurred months after Earhart's disappearance,
You keep bringing up theories but not a shread of evidence to support them. What does the tenacity of the Japanese soldier have to do with this?!? Dead witnesses?!? No supporting documentation and years of questionable witnesses. Bottom line, you're grasping at air to conger a conspiracy theory that doesn't exist.
I've read about the "Orona theory." Think about this - its war time1944 and the US discovers that Amelia Earhart was held captive since 1937 and then dies in Japanese captivity -
THE GREATEST PIECE OF ANTI-JAPANESE PROPAGANDA SINCE PEARL HARBOR!!!
Don't you think someone would have wanted this news out to further rally the American People!!!
Is E=MC2 a theory? Maybe we should try turning coal into gold!