Airmail postboxes had much later and more extensive posting times than regular postboxes, and postage rates were higher than standard post. The RAF initially played a key role in delivering airmail to troops who were based overseas in a joint venture between the Royal Air Force and the British Army Post Office (BAPO).Īs volumes of letters and interest in sending international air mail grew, the postal service launched in 1930 blue airmail postboxes that were designed to advertise the new airmail service. Aero Legends Ltd acquired the aircraft in 2014. Whitmore on the 1st December 1953 and registered as G-ANMO on the 22nd January 1954. It ended its service at 12 MU where it was sold to Mr A. Its next unit was based at Gatwick and it then served with a succession of training units throughout the war such as 10 EFTS and 22 EFTS.

K4259 was issued to 1 Armament Support Unit (ASU) on Februbefore issue to 24 squadron 11 fighter group on the 5th June 1937.

During the Second World War, RAF pilots learned to fly in the Tiger Moth before progressing to other aircraft such as the Spitfire, Hurricane and Lancaster. The aircraft, K4259, was originally allocated to the Royal Air Force on Novemat Kenley. Today airmail is of course very much a core part of Royal Mail’s operation, ensuring we deliver mail as quickly as possible to destinations around the world.” “This flight pays tribute to those pioneers of the skies while underlining the entente cordiale that exists between Royal Mail and its French counterpart La Poste as we continue to oil the wheels of commerce between our two countries. “Royal Mail owes a great debt of gratitude to those early aviators who often took their lives in their hands to ensure that the mail was delivered safely to overseas destinations,” said Royal Mail CEO Moya Greene. With unheated, open cockpits and before the age of radio, pilots would rely on compasses for navigation as well as following landmarks such as railway lines to ensure they were on track. The pilots were under some pressure to deliver the mail on time given the several variables that could lead to delays including high winds and inclement weather. Royal Mail recreated the flight in another de Havilland biplane, a DH82 Tiger Moth as a tribute to those early pioneers of aviation who braved often difficult conditions to get mail overseas. On November 10 1919, Aircraft Transport and Travel carried the first international airmail from Hounslow to Paris in an Airco DH4A de Havilland biplane, flight number G-EAHF, with a Royal Mail pennant proudly attached to its rudder. This historic flight was the forerunner to the first scheduled airmail service between England and France. The aircraft took off at RAF Hendon to land in Paris-Le Bourget in a journey that took 2 hours and 30 minutes and cost £21 per passenger, the equivalent of more than £1,000 today. In 1919, Lt Henry 'Jerry' Shaw, chief pilot of Aircraft Transport and Travel, flew the first commercial flight across the English Channel in a de Havilland DH.9 biplane. The sortie pays tribute to the UK’s first scheduled, international flight to carry mail for the general public. The Tiger Moth crossed the channel and was greeted by French postal workers from La Poste on landing. The aircraft carried a symbolic bag of mail which included letters from UK schoolchildren as well as a personal letter from Moya Greene, CEO of Royal Mail Group to Philippe Wahl, CEO of La Poste, before returning with another batch of mail in the late afternoon. To mark this occasion, a vintage biplane flew from Headcorn Airfield in Kent to Le Touquet in France. Within thirty years of this flight, Britain would become the world’s largest carrier of airmail. The first proving flight for a cross-channel commercial route was made by Lt Henry 'Jerry' Shaw, chief pilot of Aircraft Transport and Travel in 1919, just under 100 years ago.

We have recreated the first scheduled, international, commercial airmail flight from the UK to Paris.

Airmail international