LOST AIRWOMAN

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22774, 7 July 1937, Page 13

LOST AIRWOMAN

VIVID PERSONALITY RECENT CALL AT DARWIN "I WILL SOON BE HOME" [fkom ouh own corkestoxdent] SYDNEY. July 2 Press messages from Darwin have given a vivid impression of the famous American airwoman Mrs. Amelia Earhart Putnam, who stayed at Darwin from 11.26 a.m. on Monday till 6.51 a.m. on Tuesday on her flight round the world. Although her navigator, Mr. Fred Noonan, seemed to be little a fleeted, Mrs. Put nam looked tired when she appeared smiling before the crowd, which had flocked out to the aerodrome in cars, on cycles, and on foot as soon as the powerful twin engines of her aeroplane had been heard.

Tall and slight, with a sjm-tanned complexion and tousled hair, the airwoman was dressed in slacks and an open-neck checked shirt. "First and foremost," sho said, "I want to bo called Amelia Earhart, and not Mrs. Putnam. Even my husband introduces me as Mrs. Earhart, and not as Mrs. Putnam. The real object of the trip is that I want to be the first woman to fly round the world as near to the equator as possible. I havo been interested in fatiguo problems, and havo been studying fatigue and human reactions fls regards flying for the Purdue University, as well as the best food for aviators."

Gaiety and Gravity Mrs. Putnam has an engaging personality and ready smile. Lithe and active, she is a woman who cannot help being busy. Flying round the world in an aeroplane that cruises comfortably at 200 miles an hour gives her no thrill, but merely satisfaction. She is not pretty, but sho would command attention anywhere. Her closecropped hair would be like that of a boy if the "Earliart" fringe did not curl so disconcertingly across her forehead.* She has the truest, bluest eyes ever seen. Her personality is made up of ever-changing moods of gaiety and gravity. The twinkling, guileless smile is always worth waiting for—and it is seldom tardy.

She is resolute and full of her own consequence. The Northern Territory Administrator's car broke down as it was conveying her into the township for lunch, and nothing could dissuade her from immediately ascertaining the trouble and prescribing a remedy. She was right in her diagnosis as the mechanics discovered later. Help With Radio The airwoman set herself to find out what was the matter with the radio apparatus in her aeroplane, which had been out of order during the Timor Sea crossing, but she tried every possible device without success. Eventually Sergeant Stanley Rose, who has charge of the Darwin direction-finding station, came to her aid and the trouble was righted in a few minutes. "Lady Lindv" was piqued, but she hardly showed it. She thanked the mere iman charmingly ' and- said she hoped she would be able to do as much for an Australian if he visited the United States.

Clad in her open blouse and slacks, she complained bitterly about the cold as she waited at dawn for her big red and silver machine to be wheeled out of the hangar for the take-off oil Tuesday. "They told me the tropics were always warm, but they're always fooling me," she said with a laugh, and dug her hands deeper into the pockets of her slacks.

"I'm getting near the end now," she said as she impatiently strode up and down outside the hangar, waiting for the engines to warm up. "I feel now that the flight is almost over and I will soon be home."

HUSBAND'S ANXIETY

FRIENDS FEAR COLLAPSE MRS. NOONAN OPTIMISTIC (Received July 0, 9.55 p.m.) NEW YORK, July 6 Mr. George H. Putnam, husband of the missing airwoman, when informed that the search for her and Mr. Noonan had been unavailing, did not comment, but it is feared that he is on the point of a collapse. Ho had been virtually without rest for 72 hours when friends finally induced him to take a few hours' sleep.

The report giving the position of tho fliers had greatly encouraged Mr. Putnam and he had attached much hope to the search. His disappointment at the failure to find a trace of the aeroplane is obvious. He is bending every effort to mobilise further assistance. Mrs. Noonan, who spent an anxious night with friends, still remains optimistic that her husband's good luck and skill will enable him to extricate himself from his plight in spite of the failure of tho most recent phase of the search