SLIDE 1
Earle Ovington at Bleriot’s flying school in Pau, France. The poster stamp for the school is on the back of the photograph.
- I. The Earliest Days
"Why Pay Extra? Promotion of the Use of Airmail by Government - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
"Why Pay Extra? Promotion of the Use of Airmail by Government - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
"Why Pay Extra? Promotion of the Use of Airmail by Government and Industry prior to WWII." By Arthur Groten I. The Earliest Days Earle Ovington at Bleriots flying school in Pau, France. The poster stamp for the school is on the
SLIDE 2
SLIDE 3
Ovington in Glenn Curtiss’s bi-plane at the 1911 Chicago International Air meet.
SLIDE 4
Ovington took this photo of the Garden City Aerodrome from his Bleriot.
SLIDE 5
Ovington’s personal copy
- f his appointment as the
first official U.S. airmail pilot.
SLIDE 6
The St. Louis Post ran this photo
- f Ovington receiving the first
bag
- f
- fficial
airmail
- n
9/23/11.
SLIDE 7
PMG Hitchcock handed the mailbag to Ovington
- n 9/25.
SLIDE 8
Doubleday, Page & Co., publishers in Garden City, foresaw the importance of these demonstration flights.
SLIDE 9
The first regularly scheduled route, between Washington and New York, commenced on May 15, 1918. Ovington wrote to his wife about it.
SLIDE 10
The USPOD reports the commencement of New York to Chicago route.
SLIDE 11
- II. Federal Government Promotion
1928 Michigan schedule
SLIDE 12
1928 New York schedule with general airmail information.
SLIDE 13
1926 Chicago brochure
SLIDE 14
The Chicago postmaster took ads in local playbills to promote airmail service.
SLIDE 15
Cards issued by the Moline, IL postmaster for distribution to his clients.
SLIDE 16
Secretary of State Herbert Hoover paid the air fee rather than use his free franking privilege.
SLIDE 17
This stereo view card of an air mail plane notes, on the reverse, the 10¢ rate.
SLIDE 18
American Airlines blotter announcing the new 5¢ rate.
SLIDE 19
USPOD leaflet explaining the new rate structure.
SLIDE 20
Air mail etiquettes often note the current rate.
SLIDE 21
USPOD air etiquette booklets promoted the new 6¢ rate
SLIDE 22
Other etiquettes promoted the speed of air mail.
SLIDE 23
Many cities used these machine cancels: “Air Mail Saves Time.”
SLIDE 24
The method of carriage was at the discretion of the postmaster. Thus the request for “whichever is quickest.” It wasn’t always air mail.
SLIDE 25
The hand stamps on these covers attest to the postmaster’s discretion.
SLIDE 26
Sometimes the quickest wasn’t the safest.
SLIDE 27
- III. Special Events and other quasi-official promotion
Lindbergh was a major promoter of the use of air mail after his historic 1927 flight.
SLIDE 28
Private entrepreneurs offered to build airports for smaller towns.
SLIDE 29
Special conferences on establishing airports were held around the country.
SLIDE 30
Curtiss-Wright’s headquarters were at the Grand Central Air Terminal in Glendale, CA in 1931.
SLIDE 31
Oakland [CA] municipal airport issued a self-mailing 14-page brochure on their services in 1928.
SLIDE 32
Many of these cards were produced by cities around the country to announce their new air services.
SLIDE 33
Commercial air events were very popular in the inter-war years. Poster stamps were often used to promote them.
SLIDE 34
In addition, there were air meets that often included air races.
SLIDE 35
Prior to the 1938 National Air Mail Week, local Air Weeks were held as at Miami in 1929.
SLIDE 36
An unusual USPOD mimeographed cachet for National Air Mail Week, 1938.
SLIDE 37
A variety of unusual events were staged to celebrate NAMW.
SLIDE 38
Hal Burnett, of WBBM, Chicago, sending off his round-the-world record disk.
SLIDE 39
Initial press release for Burnett’s plan.
SLIDE 40
- IV. Private and Airline Promotion
Hand stamps were the simplest form of private advocacy.
SLIDE 41
A beautiful meter slogan, clearly promoting air travel.
SLIDE 42
Air mail stationery began as hand-
- drawn. Preprinted envelopes show
a myriad of designs.
SLIDE 43
The folding Airgram was first introduced by Varney in 1927.
SLIDE 44
In addition to the USPOD etiquettes, there were many private ones.
SLIDE 45
Hotels often prepared special air etiquettes for their patrons.
SLIDE 46
Airlines promoted their services with air etiquettes as well as air baggage labels.
SLIDE 47
Notes that some even refer to their particular route designation.
SLIDE 48
And, of course, there were leaflets and brochures as well.
SLIDE 49
The promotional activity was demonstrably successful.