Muriel, the last surviving 1935 Lockheed Electra 10E
1042 - the last surviving Lockheed Electra 10E. The Electra is named Muriel, after Amelia Earhart's sister, but how did Muriel end up at her new home in Atchison, KS?
Muriel was presented brand new in December 1935 to Pan American Airways under registration number NC14972 and from there was transferred to Aerovias Centrales in Mexico. This airline operated under contract to Pan Am.
While this aircraft is not 1042, it does show what she would have looked like while flying for Aerovia Centrales
Shortly after the airline disbanded and the aircraft was sold to Cia Mexicana de Aviacion, also in Mexico, and from there to Panair do Brasil and subsequently to VARIG, Brazil.
Muriel, 1042, while she was flying for Panair do Brasil (ca. 1940s)
In the late 1950s-early 1960s Muriel was purchased by Provincetown-Boston Airlines (PBA) and was given the registration N2068A and she was put into service flying their Cape Cod-Boston-New York route. Eventually her registration was changed to N35PB.
1042 early in her service to PBA (photo courtesy of flypba.com).
1042 in a later PBA scheme (photo courtesy of flypba.com).
In 1970, 1042 traded hands once again and ended up at the Zephyrhills Parachute Center in Florida where she was used in sky-diving operations. Nine years later, in 1979, the aircraft was sold to the Wings and Wheels Museum in Orland, Florida.
At the Zephyrhills Parachute Center (ca. 1970s)
1042 was kept in storage at the Wings and Wheels Museum until 1982 when the aircraft was purchased by Grace McGuire, who gave her the name Muriel. Grace planned to restore it and retrace Amelia Earhart's 1937 world flight. Unfortunately, do to health conditions over the years, Grace realized that the dream of a world flight was not going to happen. In 2016, Muriel was packed up one last time on a trip to her brand new home as the centerpiece at the Amelia Earhart Hangar Museum in Atchison, KS, set to open in 2023!
Muriel in Atchison at the Amelia Earhart Hangar Museum.
Muriel in Atchison 2021
Muriel, 1042, in Atchison, this past spring 2022.