First flight cover
In
Collecting first flight covers
With the advent of air travel it wasn't long before airplanes were carrying the mail between distant points about the globe. In the United States and Germany airmail delivery was greeted with the same national enthusiasm and fanfare as was experienced with the first trips to the moon by US astronauts. Consequently, many people sent philatelic mail to themselves or friends that was carried aboard these flights in order to get a souvenir of the historic event.[6] Covers carried aboard these flights are very popular and famous in some cases. The United States Post Office Department recognised the potential in providing first flight cover services to philatelists quite early on and in 1926 The Postal Bulletin carried extensive instructions for postmasters to ensure appropriate circulation took place and proper markings were added.[7]
Due to the small loads carried on early first flights, these covers are scarce, in demand and expensive.
Early first flights
The first official postal delivery flight between two towns took place on February 18, 1911, during the
The United Kingdom's first and only official pre-World War I airmail flight took place in 1911 to mark the coronation of King George V flying mail between London (Hendon Aerodrome) and Windsor from September 9–15 carrying 926 pounds of mail.[9]: 125 The following year a German Reichspost postal flight took place between Mannheim and Heidelberg on which first flight postcards were carried.[11]
The first scheduled U.S. Air Mail service began on May 15, 1918, and carried mail from Washington, D.C., to New York City. The type of airplane used was the U.S. Army
See also
- First day cover
- Philatelic mail
References
- ^ "Glossary of Aerophilatelic Covers". American Air Mail Society. 2013. Archived from the original on 2015-09-10. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
- ^ "Glossary of Postal Terms: Publication 32" (pdf). United States Postal Service. July 2013. p. 85. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
- ISBN 0-87341-448-9.
- ^ ISBN 0-600-01797-4.
- ^ Finch, John. "Different Types Of Collecting Philatelic Covers". About.com. Archived from the original on 2015-03-31. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
- ^ "F is for Firsts: First Flights". Alphabetilately,org. 2007-01-18. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
- ^ "Mail for First Air Mail Flights" (PDF). The Postal Bulletin. 157 (14081). United States Post Office Department: 1. 17 May 1926. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
- ^ "Catalagos & Books". American Air Mail Society. 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-04-26. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
- ^ OCLC 152505.
- ^ Ganz, Cheryl (2011-01-25). "India and the World's First Official Air Mail by Airplane". Pushing the Envelope. National Postal Museum. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
- ^ "Erste deutsche amtliche Postflüge in Heidelberg und Mannheim am 19. Mai 1912" (in German). tag-der-briefmarke.org. 2012-01-07. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
- OCLC 30318465.