Reply To: Air Navigation

[manxcat]

To: kollsman,
I am envious of your personal communications with Gary LaPook, I tried to track him down on the Internet for a few weeks, some years ago, but had no luck. I got as far as the http://www.stratusproject.com/, which is a donation site for an Earhart Plane sonar search group. Gary LaPook is shown as being on staff at Stratus Project. I have a picture of LaPook standing in front of the Titanic’s graving dry dock, holding his bubble octant.
I was much luckier in tracking down Ann Pellegreno; and have exchanged Email with her a number of times. She must be in her 90s by now. She lost her long time husband when he crashed one of their private planes very near their home in Texas in recent decades. She has never volunteered information to me, rather, she has made some short answers to my direct questions. For example: when I mentioned to her what I had read about the Polhemous Computer, her one word answer was that it was “GENIUS”. And when I asked about takeoffs and landings on Howland Island, she answered that she thought that she would have probably been able to land on a runway at Howland (but she wouldn’t have “liked” it) Then, she added that taking off from Howland would’ve been dangerous, especially if there were a lot of birds roosting on the island—because the birds would’ve been taking-off at the same time the plane was. I was proud of the fact that I was able to inform her of a few interesting things that she didn’t know about Earhart’s World Flight.
Regarding the Polhemous Report: My offer will always open.
Thanks Again & Have a Nice Day,
—Joseph