George V Recess Officials The 3d, 6d and 1s values were issued overprinted OFFICIAL in 1915 / 1916 while the 4d, 8d and 9d were issued in the 1920s. None of the other recess printed values were overprinted. The stamps The 3d value was issued overprinted OFFICIAL in December 1915, the 6d value in June […]
George V Recess Definitives This issue is one of the glories of New Zealand philately. It shows that beautiful stamps do not have to be multi-coloured or pictorials. Linley Richardson from Wellington was commissioned to produce the design of the new King George V stamps in 1911. Several alternatives were explored and rejected. When Sir
George V Fivepence The 5d value was not issued until April 1922 with the Edward VII issue remaining in use until then. The colour was light blue until 1930 when the colour was changed to pale ultramarine. Then, in March 1932, a further change was made to steel blue. The plate had number 43. Like
1930s Commemoratives The only George V commemorative issue in the 1930s was the Silver Jubilee. The ANZAC and Commerce issues of 1936 were during the short reign of Edward VIII. Silver Jubilee 1935 Recess printed stamps commemorating the Silver Jubilee of George V were issued on 7 May 1935. They show George V and Queen
1920s Commemoratives There were only three commemorative issues in this decade: the Victory issue, the map stamp and the Dunedin Exhibition. Victory Issue 1920 The dies and plates were produced by De La Rue. The stamps were issued in London on 9 November 1919, but not in New Zealand until 27 January 1920. There was
First Regular Tasman airmail (TEAL) April 1940 Tasman Empire Airways Limited (TEAL) inaugurated the first regular trans-Tasman airmail service from Auckland to Sydney on 30 April 1940. The plane was the Short S30 Empire flying boat Aotearoa and the flight took 9 hours. The Aotearoa, commanded by Capt. J.W. Burgess, had been flown from Southampton
Air Mail Across Indian Ocean, 1944-45 The route from New Zealand to the UK via Australia was re-opened for high priority air mail and forces airgraphs in July 1943 [1]. The mail was flown across the Indian Ocean between Perth and Lake Koggola, Colombo in a Catalina flying boat by Qantas. This service was kept
South Westland Airmail The first regular New Zealand airmail service was not between major population centres, but was to South Westland connecting Hokitika with Haast and Okuru. (There had previously been an experimental airmail between Hokitika and Okuru in September 1932.) The route was operated by Air Travel (N.Z.) Ltd with J.C (Bert) Mercer owner
Union Airways to Auckland On 27 June 1937, Union Airways started a regular airmail service between Wellington and Auckland via Palmerston North and New Plymouth. There were connections with the South Island through Union Airways Dunedin service at Palmerston North or Cook Strait Airways at Wellington. North-bound airmails were flown from the South Island to
New services, March 1936 On 30 December 1935, Cook Strait Airways started a regular passenger service over a triangular route linking Nelson, Wellington and Blenheim. The planes used were two DH 89 Dragon Rapides and the chief pilot was G B Bolt. On January 15 1936, Union Airways started a regular passenger service between Palmerston
Union Airways, 28 June On 28 June 1936, Union Airways made an experimental flight continuing the regular Palmerston North-Dunedin flight to Invercargill. The return flight to Dunedin was also made on 28 June with the regular Dunedin to Palmerston North flight then taking place as normal on 29 June. Approximately 800 items were flown to
Emergency Flights, June 1940 Early in the morning of 19 June 1940, the Niagara was sunk by a mine shortly after leaving Auckland. As a precaution, the ferry services across the Cook Strait were cancelled and ordinary surface mail was flown between Wellington and the South Island on emergency flights on aircraft chartered from Union
East Coast Airways extension On 30 October 1937, East Coast Airways extended their Gisborne, Napier service to Palmerston North and on 10 January 1938 to Wanganui. The extension to Palmerston North enabled connections to be made with Union Airways services at Palmerston North and hence with Cook Strait Airways at Blenheim. This cover was carried
Cook Strait Extension, 1937 The initial Cook Strait Airways service was between Wellington, Blenheim and Nelson. In February 1937, the service was extended from Nelson to Greymouth and Hokitika. There were three flights a week from Wellington, Blenheim and Nelson to Greymouth and Hokitika from where a connection could be made with the Air Travel
East Coast Airways On 16 April 1935, East Coast Airways (ECAL) started a regular passenger service between Gisborne and Napier. This was the first licensed regular passenger service in New Zealand. The planes used were two DH 84 Dragons. Gisborne – Napier An official airmail was only carried on the first flight from Gisborne to
NZ to US and Canada Although there was an experimental official airmail flight to the United States in 1938, a regular New Zealand – USA airmail service did not start until 1940. However, mail from New Zealand could connect with airmail services provided by other countries, including the USA and Canada. Before July 1930, the
US Military Post Offices in New Zealand The location of US ships, army divisions, etc. was not publically known and mail was sent via Fleet Post Offices or Army Post Offices. Numbers were allocated and the associated location often changed as units were moved around. Various Naval and Army Post Offices were based in New
First Regular US-NZ Airmail, July 1940 After the loss of the Samoan Clipper in 1938, Pan American did not set up a regular New Zealand – USA service until 1940. There were two survey flights in 1939, the first was from San Francisco to Auckland between 22 and 30 August while the second was between
1938 NZ to Samoa and Hawaii The first official airmail flight from New Zealand to USA was in January 1938 via American Samoa, Kingman Reef and Hawaii. The flight left Auckland on 2 January and the pilot was Ed Musick. To Samoa The first leg of the 1938 Auckland to US flight was to American
New Zealand Prisoner of War Mail About 9000 New Zealand troops were captured during World War II with about 4000 in Greece and Crete in April/May 1941 and 2000 in North Africa in November/December 1941 [2, 5]. Mail from POWs went free by surface, but air mail had to be paid for. Air mail from
Other Airmail 1940-41: New Zealand – USA – UK From July 1940, there was a regular trans-Pacific airmail service (FAM 19) by PanAm between New Zealand and the USA. However, this service was expensive. The airmail rate to the UK was 6s 3d, reducing to 5s 9d in September 1940 and there were alternative (partial)
USA to NZ via Hawaii, Philippines, Hong Kong and Macau, 1935 – 37 The first flight of the regular Pan American airmail service (FAM 14) from USA to the Philippines (Manila) left San Francisco on 22 November 1935. The route was via Hawaii, Midway Island, Wake Island and Guam. The aim was to provide a
1935 Airmail Stamps New airmail 1d, 3d and 6d stamps were issued on 4 May 1935. The design by J. Berry was based on a photograph of Bell Block aerodrome, New Plymouth and the plane is a prototype of the DH 86 Express. The dies and plates were produced at the Australian Note and Stamp
The 1935 Airmail Plates There was one plate for each value; plate 1 for the 1d, plate 2 for the 3d and plate 3 for the 6d. The plate numbers were in the top right corner along with a sheet number. 1d plate 3d plate 6d plate back The above information is taken from The
Airmail Booklets In 1995, New Zealand trial AirPost International booklets were issued with the $1 Butterfly definitive se-tenant with an air mail label. A further AirPost International booklet was issued in 1996 and and an Air International booklet in 2000. AirPost International Booklet 1995 The booklet was issued on 1 September 1995 and contained five
Early Horseshoe Route, June – August 1940 After Italy entered World War II on 10 June 1940, mail could no longer be flown between Alexandria (Egypt) and the UK via the Mediterranean. Air mail that was in transit and had still to cross the Mediterranean was ‘dumped’ and sent by surface, usually via the Cape.
End of Horseshoe Route When Japan entered World War II in December 1941, the Horseshoe Route was immediately under threat. At the same time as the attack on Pearl Harbor both Siam and Malaya were attacked by the Japanese on 8 December and Siam surrendered later that day. Three reserve routes had been planned between
Forces Mail, 1940-45 From February 1940 until 1943, a significant number of New Zealand troops were based in Egypt. Initially, they used Egyptian stamps, but from 1 May 1941, British Middle East Forces were able to use the stamps of their own country on letters home. Egypt to New Zealand before Horseshoe Route Until 8
Air Pageants 1932: Invercargill and Timaru Special commemmorative covers were flown at Air Pageants held in Invercargill on 20 February and in Timaru on 9 April 1932. In both cases the pilot was Capt. T.W (Tiny) White who signed all covers and the plane was a Hermes Spartan IV. Invercargill The covers were flown from
Christchurch-Timaru: 10th Anniversary, 1931 New Zealand’s first daily air mail service was between Christchurch, Ashburton and Timaru and started on 31 January 1921, run by Canterbury (N.Z.) Aviation. It was not commercially successful and ceased in April. To mark the 10th Anniversary, a special envelope was produced and signed by Capt. Euan Dickson who had
Kaitaia – Auckland, 1931 The Kaitaia Aero Club started an intermittent passenger service betwen Kaitaia and Auckland with the first flight on 29 November 1930. The plane was a DH 60 Moth owned by the Air Survey and Transport Co and the pilot was F.D Mill. The first Auckland – Kaitaia airmail was on 24
Wellington – West Coast On January 20, 1932 a survey flight was made from Wellington to Hokitika on the west coast of the South Island with the return on the same day. Stops were made in both directions at Nelson and Westport. The company involved was Air Travel, the pilot was M.C. McGregor and the
Survey Flights 1930-32 Although New Zealand is larger than the United Kingdom, its population is less than 3.5 million. The distance by road from the north of the North Island to the south of the South Island is greater than the distance between Edinburgh in Scotland and Milan in Italy. The combination of it being
Gisborne Air Transport Gisborne Air Transport ran a Gisborne – Hastings airmail service from March 1931 to December 1932. Gisborne Air Transport took over the Dominion Airlines route with the first flight being on 10 March 1931. The plane was a DH 60 Moth and the pilot was W.H. Lett. The airmail cost was 6d
Hawkes Bay Earthquake 1931, Emergency Flights On 3 February 1931 there was a devastating earthquake in the Hawkes Bay area killing 161 people in Napier, 93 in Hastings and 2 in Wairoa. As the road had been badly damaged, special emergency flights took place to carry emergency medical supplies although mail was also carried. Mail
Christchurch-Dunedin, 1930 Air Travel operated a daily passenger service between Christchurch and Dundedin from 6 November 1930 until April 1931. The plane was a DH 50 and the pilot was Sq-Ldr M.C. McGregor. An official airmail was carried on the first day flights: from Christchurch in the morning and the return from Dunedin in the
Dominion Airlines 1930-31 Dominion Airlines ran a weekday passenger and airmail service between Gisborne and Hastings in December 1930 and January 1931. The service began on 22 December 1930 with airmail payment by a special 6d label. Letters were posted on arrival and so there was also the ordinary 1d postage. Sixpence label 44 letters
Christmas Eve Flights 1932 The 1932 Christmas Eve airmail flights were organised along the same routes as in 1931. The mail was smaller (6,709 compared with 16,836). A much fancier cachet was applied compared with the earlier survey flights. Once again, Palmerston North was the centre of operations. Mail from Auckland was sent by the
Auckland – North Auckland The route of the survey flight on April 30, 1932 was Auckland, Dargaville, Russell, Whangarei and back to Auckland. Again, the company involved was Air Travel, the pilot was M.C. McGregor and the plane was a Simmonds Spartan. An official airmail was delivered and picked up at each stop with the
New Zealand Airmail Stamps At a Universal Postal Union Convention held in London, it was agreed that, from 1 July 1930, mail posted in New Zealand would be accepted by air services in Australia, Canada, USA and on the Karachi – London route. As there had also been experimental internal airmail flights, it was decided
