Rare film footage of Amelia Earhart, believed to be the last surviving video of the aviator before her disappearance, has emerged after being stored in a box for decades. The footage, taken in 1937 at an airfield in Burbank, California, shows Earhart smiling and climbing on her aircraft ahead of her ill-fated attempt to fly around the world.
The film was shot by photographer Al Bresnik and his brother John, who documented Earhart's preparations for her first global flight attempt. After John Bresnik's death in 1992, his son discovered the film but did not realise its significance until years later. The footage has now been digitised by publisher Paragon Agency, which plans to donate the original to a museum or archive.
While the film appears authentic, experts from the International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery (TIGHAR) dispute its dating. They argue that the absence of repair plating on the plane indicates the footage was taken in March 1937, before Earhart's first failed attempt, rather than in May before her final flight. TIGHAR's executive director, Richard Gillespie, believes the aviator's remains may lie near the Pacific atoll of Nikumaroro, where his team is conducting a search expedition.
The footage offers no new clues about Earhart's fate, but investigators have welcomed its emergence. The film is being released alongside a book titled Amelia Earhart's Last Photo Shoot.
