Seen at Pearl Harbor’s Fleet Air Base in 1936-37, this Martin M-130 – better known as Pan Am’s “Hawaii Clipper” – is prepped for its next long hop over the Pacific. Sadly, in 1938, somewhere between Guam and Manila, this aircraft disappeared with all its crew and passengers, never to be seen again.
Conspiracy theories sprang up, ones that continue to this day. Chief among these rumors is that the plane was sabotaged by Japanese secret agents to prevent it from delivering millions of dollars for military aid to China. A more plausible scenario (but less spy thriller) is one where the plane flew into unavoidable severe weather and was destroyed (the last radio contact was interrupted due to weather-related static).
Japanese spies aside, the cause that led to the disappearance of the Hawaii Clipper will probably always remain a mystery.
The Jive Bomber 