The Great Airport Mystery facts for kids
Original edition
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| Author | Franklin W. Dixon |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Hardy Boys |
| Genre | Detective, mystery |
| Publisher | Grosset & Dunlap |
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Publication date
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May 1, 1930 revised edition 1965 |
| Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
| Pages | 192 |
| Preceded by | The Mystery of Cabin Island |
| Followed by | What Happened at Midnight |
The Great Airport Mystery is the ninth book in the original The Hardy Boys Mystery Stories series. It was published by Grosset & Dunlap in 1930.
This book was written by Leslie McFarlane for the Stratemeyer Syndicate. Many of the early Hardy Boys books were updated between 1959 and 1973. The original story of The Great Airport Mystery was rewritten in 1965 by Tom Mulvey. This means there are two different stories with the same title!
Contents
The Mystery Begins: Revised Edition Plot
In the updated 1965 version, brothers Frank and Joe Hardy are driving home. They take a shortcut and get into a strange car crash. They also meet a very unfriendly stranger.
The next day, the boys get a job from Mr. Allen. He is the president of the Stanwide Mining Equipment Company. They pretend to be factory messengers. But really, they are working undercover to find missing shipments. These shipments contain very expensive mining equipment with platinum.
Investigating the Missing Equipment
The Hardy boys soon realize the criminals know who they are. So, they quit their messenger jobs. Instead, they rent a plane. They take pictures from the air of the area where their car crash happened. However, their camera and the film are stolen before they can develop the photos.
As they look into the stolen camera and the missing equipment, they keep finding clues. They see footprints and hear a voice. It belongs to Clint Hill, an aircraft pilot. Everyone thought Clint had died in a plane crash in the ocean. This makes the boys wonder if his "ghost" is involved in the thefts.
Solving the Case
After getting their pictures back, the Hardy boys rent a helicopter. They fly back to the car crash area. There, they find a large hidden cave. Inside, they discover the stolen equipment shipments!
Next, the Hardy boys fly to a small Caribbean island. Then they go to Montana. They are chasing the criminals all over the place. Finally, they manage to catch all the people involved in the crimes. They return to Bayport, happy to have solved another mystery. It turns out Clint Hill is alive after all! He survived the crash and pretended to be dead.
The Original Story: 1930 Plot
In the first version of the story, Frank and Joe are on their way to the new Bayport Airport. A mail pilot named Giles Ducroy almost runs them over. Ducroy blames the boys because he lost his job. Later, he tries to frame the boys for a mail robbery.
Even though they don't have an alibi (a way to prove where they were), Mr. Applegate and Mr. Jefferson bail them out of jail. The Hardy boys then overhear Ducroy and two other bad guys planning a big air mail robbery.
Catching the Crooks
The boys find out that Ducroy and his friends bought an airplane. Frank and Joe secretly hide in the back of it to follow the criminals. When Ducroy and his gang try to steal a large payroll, the Hardy boys manage to capture them.
The real pilot, whose plane was ruined by the thieves, ends up using the crooks' plane to deliver his cargo. At the end of the story, the boys graduate from high school. They also get a reward because the information they sent to their father helps clear their names.
Main Characters
Hardy Family and Friends
- Frank Hardy: One of the two main teenage detectives.
- Joe Hardy: Frank's younger brother and detective partner.
- Mrs. Laura Hardy: Frank and Joe's mother.
- Miss Gertrude Hardy: Frank and Joe's aunt.
- Mr. Fenton Hardy: Frank and Joe's father, a famous private detective.
- Chet Morton: A good friend of the Hardy boys.
- Jerry Madden: A pilot who helps the Hardys. He flies them to a Caribbean island. In other books, his name is Jerry Gilroy.
- Iola Morton: Chet's sister and a friend of the Hardys.
- Callie Shaw: Frank's girlfriend.
- Mrs. Morton: Chet and Iola's mother.
- Biff Hooper: Another friend of the Hardy boys.
Helpful Allies
- Mr. Albert Allen: The owner of Stanwide Company who hires the Hardys.
- Lou Diamond: The tower chief at Bayport Airport. He helps the Hardys with information.
- Randy Watson: A pilot who flies the Hardys when they take aerial photos.
- Mr. Freeman: The owner of “Freeman’s Camera House.”
- Richard Tyson: A man who tries to pick up the Hardys' photos using a fake name.
In Popular Culture
The name of this book inspired a progressive metal band. They are called The Great Airport Mystery. Their album, The Great Spaceport Mystery, came out on May 7, 2013.
