Airpost Journal
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2& AIRPOST JOURNAL . ' ~R;Nll~ .S~~:IN~ ' . D'AVIATION . D' HEUOPOLIS . ~ - ..~, < ~: ·' .~ ~ · ,. ... - ' , · LE CAIR.£. •. · . ':_··- .-.·· "... '"- .- J ····•··•·············• ....... The rare special vignette issued for the pioneer Heliopolis, Egypt Air Meet held in February, 1910. Only three or four copies are known. trlaAcA f 940 EST. 1896 EST.-1896 A. P J-11 L L I PS AIR MAIL SPECIALIST NEWPORT MON ENGLAND TRANS-ATLANTICS 1939 To Complete Orders We Urgently Require Above and We Will Pay HighKt Prices or Allow Generous Exchange for Other Items From Our Stock. AIR MAI L M A GAZ I NE FULL OF INFORMATION .AND ILLUSTRATIONS Sc MONTHLY 60c YEARLY, POST FREE Mint Stamps Accepted SPECIMEN COPIES POST FREE ON REQUEST COL L EC TI ONS Ap. 1 Twenty Superb Foreign First Air Mails, Normal Price at . Least $8 ....... , ...........: .....: ....: ................ _......... .~ ... .............................$2 .00 Ap. 2 100 Superb First Ap. 8 48 Polish First Air Air Mails, normal price Mails, impossible to re- at least $60 ...................... $ 20 peat .......... :......................... $ 20 Ap. 3 Ditto, including Ap. 9 Ditto, but 84 firsts $160 rarities .............................. $400 Ap. 10 70 British Em- Ap. 4 1870-1939 Histor- pire Firsts, fascinating ical Album, 70 superb album .-...........•................... $ 20 First Air Mails ........•.......$ 20 Ap. · 5 Ditto, including Ap. 11 Ditto, including rarities ..............................$200 . rarities •................: ............ $200 Ap. 6 World-Wide Collec Ap. 12 52 British Inland tion, 70 superb First Air Firsts. An investment Mails ..................................-$ 20 Album ................................ $ 20 Ap. 7 Ditto, including Ap. 13 Ditto, but 76 rarities .....................: ........ $400 Firsts ..................................$40 0 Ap. 14 Various Means of Transport, Balloon, Dirigible, Catapult, Rocket, etc. 56 Firsts ................................................ $20.00 Ap. 2 to Ap. 14 are described and mounted in our Famous Rex Loose-Leaf Albums. ORDER BY INDEX NUMBER. WE GUARANTEE SATISFACTION OR REFUND OF P AYMENT. USA & CANADIAN COLLECTORS NOW BUY AT $4 TO THE £1 Instead of the Pre-War Rate of $5 to the £1 A SUBSTANTIAL REDUCTION DOLLAR BILLS ACCEPTED IHI 1E IL I 0 JP> <O> IL IS VIG~JETTJE • enlightenment on the early Air Meet Egypt's Age-Old Sphinx Greeted and the re-publication of the exis New-Born Aviation In tence of the Heliopolis vignette for February, 1910 the initial general information of contemporary aero-philatelists. The late Brigadier-General R. Ridgway, • president of the Aero Philatelic Club by WALTER J. CONRATH of London, England and honorary member of the American Air Mail • Society, presented the following ac DDACK IN AVIATION'S pioneer count of his findings on the event in DD days when bamboo struts and the February, 1937 AIRPOST JOUR pusher type mountings fitted out the NAL. contraptions known as "those crazy "A vignette first attracted my in flying machines," air meets were terest in the Egyptian pioneer pic few and usually attracted an inter tured in the October, 1936 AIRPOST national representation of enthusiasts JOURNAL. This occurred in 1925. who participated in the activities, then considered by most people as " The vignette was a colored one, little more than a new fangled sport. but at this date I cannot remember In February, 1910, a full year be the colors. It consisted of the design fore the first mail was officially of an eagle on a steering wheel with fiown by airplane at. Allahabad, a crescent and star behind the eagle India, other subjects of the British and wheel, the inscription "GRANDE Empire organized an Air Meet at SEMAINE D'AVIATION D'HELIO Heliopolis Aerodrome (Cairo), Egypt, POLIS" (at the top) and "LE CAIRE under the sponsorship of the Aero FEVRIER 1910" (at the bottom). Club of Egypt. Up until 1936, so far Later I obtained a "piece" with the as aero-philately is concerned, the postmark as shown in Mr. Kessler's pioneer event was practically unre article. I then wrote the editor of corded. Then,· F. W. Kessler, New L'Aero Philatelie, who published the York airpost specialist and dealer, following in the February, 1927 is writing in the AIRPOST JOURNAL sue of his publication: announced the discovery of an Egyp tian picture postal card (illustrated "The Heliopolis meeting was held herewith) showing the Sphinx and under the auspices of the Aero Club the Great Pyramid and having af of Egypt, and took place between · fixed a 2 milliemes green stamp tied the 6th and 13th of February, 1910. on with the special cancellation: Purses were offered for the follow "Heliopolis Aerodrome, 13, II, '10." ing events: What appears to be a Bleriot mono (1). Daily prize for distance. plane was shown in flight over the left of the stone Sphinx. There was (2). Daily prize for height. no indication that mail had been car (3). Daily prize for speed. ried, but here at least, seemed to be (4). Prize for best total distance. proof of a special cancellation direct (5). Boghes-Pacha-Nubor prize. ly connected with an aerial event. The JOURNAL sought further infor (6). Heliopolis prize. mation on this interesting old card, (7). Baron Empain prize. already classed as No. 1 Egyptian "The entrants were: Latham on an pioneer airpost item. Antionette; Rougier on a Voisin· Additional details were shortly Balsan on a Bleriot; Le Blan on ~ forthcoming, together with further Bleriot; Gobron on a Voisin; Duray OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF TH.J: Tl-IE AIRPOST JOURNAL AMERICAN AIR MAIL SOCIETY March, 1940 Vol. XI, No. 6 Issue 119 20c Per Copy 112 THE AIRPOST JOURNAL • This picture postal card showing Egypt's famed Sphinx and G.rea:t Pyramid was used lo send greetings from :the Heliopolis Aerdrome during the Air Meet, February 13, 1910. Nole lhe plane, which ap- pears :to be a Bleriol. on a Farman; Hans Grade on a Grade; ed to Francis J. Field for the cor Hauvette Michelin on an Antionette; ner copy, showing marginal paper on Metrot on a Voisin; Riemsdyck on a two sides, which is now in the writ Curtiss; Mlle. de la Roche on a Voisin. er's collection. According to Mr. Field Another entrant, Montimer Singer, only three or four of these stamps on a Farman, was prevented from in good condition, are known t~ entering by an accident. exist. The bird, shown in black, and "The Aero Club lent its grounds described by Brigadier-General Ridg for the meeting, the winners being way as an eagle, might possibly be Rougier, Metrot, Le Blon and Balsan. a falcon, which it seems to better re semble. The crescent and star shown "Special vignettes were put on in the white background, is the na covers sent by those present and, in tional Egyptian symbol. addition, letters were marked with a special postmark. There is no rec The Heliopolis Aerodrome cancel ord of the number of letters sent.'' led postal card, which was a part of Thus, the existence of the Helio the well-known Dr. Cole airpost col polis vignette was pointed out to lection, was sold at auction by Mr. American collectors who have seen Kessler last December, bringing a the card and special cancellation. It price of approximately fifty dollars. seems evident, however, that Briga It is now in the collection of Mr. Haig dier-General Ridgway did not have Ouzounian of New York. one of the vignettes in his collection Although the stamp is not official, at the time he wrote his account for it represents an interesting cycle of the JOURNAL. research in aero-philately, and is un The special Heliopolis Air Meet doubtedly one of the first associa vignette (illustrated on the front tions of the issuance of a stamp in cover in full natural colors) was pre connection with aviation, which evi pared in red, yellow and black, per dently was used on mail at the time forated and gummed. We are indebt- of the pioneer Air Meet in Egypt. How Goes Aero-Philately In Europe? • In proof of the healthy state of aero-philately in Britain may be by FRANCIS J. FIELD cited the recent publications of Sutton Coldfield, England specialised handbooks on a pioneer Chile-Argentine air mail and on the whole gamut of· British Inland ser • vices since 1933; both are privately N COMMON with general philate printed works by well-known am I ly, air post collecting is experienc ateur specialists. There have been ing a mild boom that promises to be discoveries, too, in unrecorded air maintained in spite of unforeseen . mail events and mint air stamps. In war developments, and if the war the former category may be included . continues to be one of attrition only that of the world's first parcel post then airpost prices will rise even - inBritain, 1911 preceding by more steeply than in the past three nearly two years the aerial parcel months. I refer, of course, to market post well known in Britain although prices in Britain and Europe. the stamp is not catalogued by Sana bria. In . connection with this dis There is a keen demand for all covery, there was some publicity good class, legitimate issues and that is quite unprecedented in the though important stocks are held, annals of aero-philately: the 1911 they are already becoming depleted. souvenirs were advertised for (and But perhaps the demand for semi "The Aero Field'' magazine mention officials and worth-while flown cov ed) in the leading British daily news ers is even more pronounced, while papers each of which has a circula foreign first flight covers from lines tion ranging from one-and-a-half to inaugurated since August last year two-and-a-half millions. are so scarce that only the luckiest collectors will be able to display a British aero-philately suffered ir really representative range. This is reparable losses in the early months due to the fact that philatelic mail of the war through the death of Fred ings, if any, have been very small as J.