Fred Noonan - Amelia Earhart’s Navigator

In Girl in the Glass, the SS Valencia’s captain seems familiar to Declan. Unsure why, Declan says:

“Captain, I’ve gotta ask one more time, why do you look so familiar? It’s not from the Antarctica trip. It’s something else. I just can’t put my finger on it.”  

“Can’t help, although I get asked that question a lot,” the captain replied, grinning. “Guess I have that kind of face.”

As we find out later, the Valencia’s captain is Fred Noonan, the flight navigator who, along with Amelia Earhart, disappeared over the Pacific Ocean in 1937 during an attempt to circumnavigate the globe. Before becoming a pioneering aviator, he spent over two decades as a merchant seaman, eventually rising to the rank of captain (hence his post-mortem career at the Valencia’s helm). Later in his career, Noonan traded seas for sky, transitioning to aviation, charting Pacific routes for Pan American World Airways.

At age 17, he started working as a merchant seaman, eventually becoming a captain. He served in World War I, surviving being on three ships sunk by U-boats. He became a skilled navigator, known for his expertise in charting Pacific routes. In the 1920s, Noonan transitioned to aviation, learning to fly. He joined Pan American World Airways, playing a key role in charting trans-Pacific routes for the "Clipper" fleet. He was highly regarded for his navigational skills, even carrying a sextant and chronometer as backups on flights. 

In 1937, Noonan was chosen by Amelia Earhart as her navigator for their world flight attempt. They disappeared on July 2, 1937, after taking off from New Guinea for Howland Island. Despite extensive searches, their plane and bodies were never found. As we discover in Girl in the Glass, Noonan and Earhart’s stories don’t end there.

Fred Noonan

Noonan & Amelia Earhart