No road, no runway, no harbor
Taraia Object expedition shipments went through Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, one of DHL’s three global superhubs. (DHL Group photo/Jay Brittain)
Delivering Amelia Earhart expedition tools to one of Earth’s most remote places
Does the lagoon of a tiny, uninhabited island in the South Pacific hold the key to solving one of aviation history’s greatest mysteries? A team of scientists from the Archaeological Legacy Institute (ALI), Purdue Research Foundation and Purdue University, thinks so. They are traveling to Nikumaroro — a remote atoll in the Phoenix Islands, Kiribati, located roughly halfway between Australia and Hawaii — to determine if a visual anomaly known as the Taraia Object is the remains of Amelia Earhart’s missing Lockheed Electra 10-E.
Transporting the tools needed for an expedition of this scale is a massive undertaking. The team has partnered with DHL Express, the world’s leading provider of international express shipping services, to move scientific equipment halfway around the world.
“This is a remarkable opportunity for DHL to be part of aviation history,” said Greg Hewitt, CEO, DHL Express U.S. “Nearly 90 years after Amelia Earhart’s plane disappeared, researchers are still working to find answers. As the Official Logistics Partner, our role is to get the technology and specialized equipment behind that effort where they need to be. That is what logistics is all about — connecting people and resources, even when the destination is one of the most remote places on Earth.”
In 1937, Earhart disappeared while attempting to become the first woman to fly around the world. At the time, she was working for Purdue as a counselor on careers for women and advisor in the Department of Aeronautics. Her plane, which she affectionately called the “Flying Laboratory,” was purchased with funds provided by the Purdue Research Foundation.
Logistics is all about connecting people and resources, even when the destination is one of the most remote places on Earth.
Greg Hewitt
CEO, DHL Express U.S.
A logistics operation most people never see
On behalf of the expedition, DHL transported three shipments comprising 33 boxes, bags and tubs, and more than 100 individual items — totaling 1,650 pounds of equipment — from Eugene, Oregon, and Pensacola, Florida, to Bonriki International Airport in Tarawa, Kiribati.
The shipments include underwater drones, side-scan sonar, magnetometers, diving equipment, GPS and navigation systems, solar panels, communications technology, environmental monitoring equipment, and field supplies.
DHL teams at the shipping locations worked directly with the expedition team to prepare and inspect the equipment, including addressing special transportation requirements for lithium batteries and other regulated components.
DHL then coordinated a combination of DHL-operated and commercial flights through the United States and onward to Tarawa, working with teams in Los Angeles and across its Americas and Asia Pacific network.
From Tarawa, the expedition team is traveling by sea to Nikumaroro, bringing the equipment and supplies needed to operate in the remote field environment.
“Behind every major expedition is a logistics operation that most people never see,” Hewitt said. “Our teams are navigating everything from specialized equipment and regulatory requirements to multiple origins and a remote final destination, so the expedition team can focus on the search.”
“When we began building the partner strategy for this expedition, we knew we needed organizations that could contribute real expertise to the mission and share Purdue’s spirit of persistence,” said Bailey Leffler, senior director of brand, partnerships and licensing. “DHL was a natural fit. Its global logistics capabilities helped us solve one of the expedition’s most complex challenges: getting highly specialized equipment to one of the most remote places in the world.”
Amelia Earhart’s disappearance has captivated the imaginations of people around the world. The partnership between ALI, Purdue Research Foundation, Purdue University and DHL brings together scientific inquiry and global logistics expertise on a mission that could write a new chapter in Earhart’s Purdue story and bring closure to one of aviation’s most enduring mysteries.
“This partnership is a great example of what we look for at Purdue,” Leffler said, “bringing together organizations with unique strengths and a willingness to take on difficult challenges to make ambitious work possible.”
