HOUSTON (AP) — The competition to solve the mystery surrounding Amelia Earhart's disappearance is reaching a fever pitch as the 75th anniversary nears.
Two parties with diverging theories hope to lay to rest later this year the issue of what happened to Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan on July 2, 1937. They disappeared while flying from New Guinea to Howland Island.
Jon Thompson says he will be the sonar operator this fall, when an expedition headed by David Jourdan and the deep-sea exploration company Nauticos begins a third mission to search near Howland Island.
In July, longtime Earhart seeker Ric Gillespie heads to an island where he believes they may have survived for a short time. He has a photo analyzed by the U.S. State Department that appears to show landing gear.
© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.