April 1922, New York
Four years have passed since Amundsen set out with the polar ship Maud to navigate across the Arctic Ocean.
A lot has gone wrong during the expedition, but Amundsen doesn’t give up on his plan to explore the unknown regions of the Arctic.
Now, he wants to try something new and acquires two airplanes.
A small Curtiss Orio aircraft, with space for two people, is named Kristine.
And a larger Junkers plane with six seats, named Elisabeth.
Both are named after the woman Amundsen was deeply infatuated with at the time.
The planes are christened with champagne. Actress Lillian Raynor is there to smash the bottle.
They are filmed. Amundsen is in flying gear, a long coat, and a cap.
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Kristine is to be used for shorter flights from the polar ship Maud, up in the ice, while Elisabeth is meant for longer flights.
Amundsen plans to fly from Alaska, via the North Pole, to Svalbard. It is within the airplane’s range, but with conditions and dangers no one has ever flown in before.
But first, Elisabeth must be flown from New York to Seattle, across the entire United States, before it can be loaded onto Maud.
On April 10, 1922, they take off, heading westward.
There are five people on board.
All could have lost their lives that day.
125 miles from Cleveland, Ohio, at an altitude of 6,000 feet, Elisabeth loses engine power.
The descent is brutal.
They fly between the treetops, hitting the ground, bouncing up and down.
When everything stops, they are upside down, but unharmed. Amundsen later summarized:
“The engine overheated and stopped. We descended from 6,000 feet and landed on our heads on an old tree stump. We all got away safely.”
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Source: Aftenposten: Ukens nytt, 9.5.1922
Amundsen acquires a new Junkers aircraft, giving it the same name, Elisabeth. He sends it to Seattle, while he continues his journey to Seattle by train.
The newspapers report, with the American press stating that Amundsen is either going to become the most fearless or the most reckless explorer in history. His planned flight over the Arctic Ocean is compared to Columbus’s journey to America.
But it will not be a success, neither for Kristine nor the new Elisabeth.
On May 11, 1923, Omdal takes off with Elisabeth from the advanced base in Wainwright, Alaska. The weather is perfect—warm and calm. But the landing is rough and brutal. The plane lands unevenly and breaks the axle. There will be no more flights for Elisabeth.
Kristine meets the same fate. The crew aboard Maud manages three short flights before it crashes for good.
When Amundsen returns to Seattle, the press reveals that he has a new plan. He intends to acquire new planes and try again—this time with Svalbard as the starting point.
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Failed attempt to get Elisabeth in the air. Source: "Med Roald Amundsen's nordpolsekspedition til første vinterkvarter''
