What were Earharts alternate plans if they could not find Howland Island?
7. Did Earhart have an alternate plan in the case Howland Island could not be found? Undoubtedly she did. The Gilbert Islands and Tarawa, under British control, would have been a prime alternate. To the south was Gardner Island in the Phoenix Group, but Gardner Island represented the same problems as Howland . . . a single isolated island and in this case an uninhabited island that would have been posed the same problems as an attempt to find Howland. It was not a likely choice and would have meant starvation and very little chance for contact with civilization. It was also the area that was searched by three airplanes from the Battleship Colorado. What was the biggest problem Earhart faced at Howland Island. 8. If Earhart was indeed far to the north of Howland Island, and the decision was made to turn back for the Gilbert Islands, directly to the west would have been the Marshall Islands. Naval officers from the Carrier Lexington who studied the Earhart flight came to the conclusion t
