Desert In A Minute
Desert in a Minute: Still Searching for Amelia
Nearly 90 years after Amelia Earhart disappeared during an attempt to fly around the world, the mystery surrounding the pioneering aviator remains unsolved. But Earhart also has a connection to the Coachella Valley, where she occasionally visited friends in Indio and was photographed during her time in the desert.
In this edition of Desert in a Minute, Steve Summerall looks back at Earhart’s connection to the region through photographs presented by the Coachella Valley Historical Society.
The pictures show Earhart enjoying horseback riding in Indio and helping American industrialist Floyd Adlum after his vehicle became stuck in muddy sand dunes. Adlum was married to legendary aviator Jacqueline Cochran, who became one of Earhart’s close friends.
Cochran and Earhart had bonded while competing in air races before World War II. After Cochran and her husband moved to Indio, Earhart would occasionally visit them.
One photograph carries a personal inscription: “To Little Georgie, Best Wishes, Amelia Earhart, 1936.”
Just one year later, on July 2, 1937, Earhart disappeared somewhere over the Pacific Ocean while attempting to become the first female pilot to circumnavigate the globe. She was three weeks away from her 40th birthday. She was legally declared dead in 1939, but efforts to determine what happened to her have continued for generations.
Two recent searches have produced no breakthrough.
In 2024, a group of deep-sea explorers from South Carolina investigated a sonar image captured in the Pacific, hoping it might show Earhart’s Lockheed 10E Electra. The image, however, did not turn out to be her aircraft.
Then, this past October, researchers from Purdue University investigated a submerged anomaly near the lagoon of uninhabited Nikumaroro Island. The team later concluded the anomaly was most likely caused by fallen trees, not an airplane.
For the Coachella Valley, the photographs offer a reminder that one of aviation’s most famous pioneers had personal ties to the desert. And while the latest searches have come up empty, the mystery of Amelia Earhart’s disappearance continues to draw investigators hoping to finally find answers.
Explore: NBCPalmSprings.com, where we are connecting the Valley.
By: NBC Palm Springs
November 10, 2026
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