AEROPHIL
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AIR CRASH, SHIP WRECK, TRAIN WRECK, DIVERTED &
RECORD FLIGHTS
AIR CRASH COVERS - September 2018
I have a large stock of air crash
covers. This is a small selection of my stock. Please send me an
email and let me know what type of crash covers you are interested in.
Prices are plus actual postage
210806 - U.S. Government Trans-Continental air mail route, crash at Elko, Nevada on 6 August 1921. Pilot William F. Blanchfield's plane caught fire on landing and was destroyed. Small cover (front only) from San Francisco to Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, postmarked San Francisco AUG 5, 1921. The cachet that was applied is from the 210716, but "S.F.CALIF.JULY I6" has been scratched out. This cachet is unlisted for 210806. Very rare. $250.00
240905 - Crash cover from an unknown crash, 24 cent airmail stamp, postmarked New York, NY SEP 5, 1924, addressed to Los Angeles, California, with single line black cachet "AIR WRECK". Backstamped San Francisco, Calif. with Air-Mail slogan cancel, SEP 7. $50.00 - SOLD
290322 - National Air Transport crash at Harmon, Illinois. Legal cover postmarked at Arkansas, Kansas MAR 21/1929, addressed to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Chicago Post Office mimeograph explanation as shown in the American Air Mail Catalogue. - Very scarce cover - $125.00
300219 - NYRBA - Legal size cover from triple crashes - postmarked Buenos Aires 19 Feb 1939, with 1st flight cachet - no backstamps - $125.00
NEW May 1929 – Pan American Airways Fake Crash Cover, Berry Islands, Bahamas. Small cover from Albany, NY, postmarked May 1, 1929, addressed to Walter Hess, Nassau, Bahamas. Manuscript cachet reading “Air Maildelayed/by Crash at/Berry Islands/May 4”. There was never any such crash. These covers were contrived by Mr. Hess. I have researched this extensively and have determined that there was no such crash. My article, published in the American Air Mail Society’s Airpost Journal is included. $50.00
310505 - Pacific Air Transport (predecessor of United Air Lines) crashed at Burbank, California. Legal size cover postmarked San Diego, CA May 5/1931, addressed to San Francisco, CA with purple two line cachet "Received in bad condition at/San francisco, Cal." Very scarce crash cover. $100.00
310505 Pacific
Air Transport.jpg
330728 - TWA crash at Kansas City, MO. Special Delivery cover from East Orange, New Jersey to Albuquerque, New Mexico, with 8 cent winged globe airmail stamp. The other stamp was washed off. Nice clean crash cachet. Backstamped Chicago andAlbuquerque. $75.00
331121 - American Airlines crash at El Paso, Texas. Cover from Montreal, Quebec, Canada to Phoenix, Arizona. Burned around edges and stamps still intact. Very scarce from Canada for this crash. - $125.00
340219 - U.S. Army Emergency Service. 1st flight from Atlanta to Boston, crashed at Greenville, South Carolina. Nice clean Special Delivery cover from Air Mail Field, Atlanta to South Orange, New Jersey, with South Orange backstamp. Special Delivery covers are very unusual. $75.00
350901 - Western Air Express crash at Burbank, California. Postmarked Los Angeles SEP 1/1935, addressed to Clinton, Iowa. Burned on left & right edges. No Cachet. American Air Mail Catalogue says three covers reported, thus a very scarce cover. $200.00
360114 - American Airlines crash at Goodwin, Arkansas on 14 Jan 1936. 6 cent Airmail stamped envelope from Dallas, Texas to Little Rock, Arkansas, postmarked JAN 14/1936, three line magenta cachet "Recovered From/Wrecked Plane/Goodwin,Ark.1-14" - Very scarce crash. $90.00
360929 - Imperial Airways "Athena", caught fire before take-off from New Delhi, India. Cover from Ayr, Scotland to Calcutta, India. Burned on left edge, no cachet as usual. Very scarce to India. $150.00
371001c & j (
371001c & j (
371001c & j (Sanford no.) + unlisted German cachet reading: "Ohne Marke/eingegangen" (forwarded without stamp) - Cover from Tel Aviv, Palestine to Berlin, Germany - type 'c' cachet & 'j' label on reverse - $350.00
371001 c & j
+ unl German cachet.jpg
371001c & j (Sanford no.) - Imperial
Airways "Courtier" crash at
371001c & j (Sanford no.) - Imperial Airways "Courtier" crash
at
NEW 371006 - KLM DC-3 "Specht" crash at Palembang, Indonesia on 6 October 1937 - Small cover postmarked at Tegal, Java 5 Oct. 37, addressed to Den Haag, Holland. No cachet but a rare crash cover. $125.00
371205 (Sanford no.) - Imperial Airways flying boat "Cygnus" crash at Brindisi, Italy on 5 Dec. 1937. Cover from Haifa, Palestine to London, stamp still intact, no cachet, but "G.R." sealing tape on reverse. - Scarce from Palestine - $150.00
NEW 371205b (Sanford no.) - Imperial Airways flying boat "Cygnus" crash at Brindisi, Italy on 5 Dec. 1937. Small cover from Cairo, Egypt to Amsterdam, Holland. Stamp soaked off, and London post office G. R. General Post Office sealing tape on the back. Scarce to Holland. $150.00
NEW 371205b (Sanford no.) - Imperial Airways flying boat "Cygnus" crash at Brindisi, Italy on 5 Dec. 1937. Small cover from Tel Aviv, Jerusalem to New York, NY. Stamp still intact, and small London post office G. R. General Post Office sealing tape on the back. Scarce to USA. $150.00
380323b - Air France crash at
380323b AF from Cote
d'Ivoire.jpg
390612aa (Sanford no.) - Imperial Airways flying boat "Centurion" crash at Calcutta, India on 12 June 1939. Small cover from India to London with type 'aa' cachet and London post office sealing label on the back. Very scarce cachet. $85.00
390612n (Sanford no.) - Imperial Airways flying boat
"Centurion" crash at Calcutta, India on 12 June 1939. Small
cover from Kooringa, Australia to London with type
'n' cachet (inverted "S" in "SALVAGED" & inverted
"N" in "CENTURION", and London post office E. R. sealing
tape on the back. Very scarce cachet variety. $110.00
390612 (Sanford no.) - Imperial Airways flying boat "Centurion" crash
at Calcutta, India on 12 June 1939. Small cover from Singapore to
Ipswich, Suffolk, England with partial cachet (impossible to determine exactly
which variety) and London post office sealing label on the back. Very
scarce from Singapore. $110.00
390612 b & e (Sanford nos.) - Imperial Airways flying boat "Centurion" crash at Calcutta, India on 12 June 1939. Small cover from New South Wales, Australia to Cambridge, England with type 'e' cachet on front and type 'b' cachet on front, and London post office sealing label on the back, which is covering the cachet. Type 'e' cachet is very scarce. $150.00
390612 x (Sanford no.) - Imperial Airways flying boat "Centurion" crash at Calcutta, India on 12 June 1939. Small cover from Hobart, Tasmania, Australia to England with type 'x' cachet with "M" missing in "MAIL". Very scarce cachet variety. $160.00
390612 o (Sanford no.) - Imperial Airways flying boat "Centurion" crash at Calcutta, India on 12 June 1939. Small cover from Melbourne, Australia to Kelmanthorpe, Yorkshire, England with type 'o' cachet with "S" missing in "SALVAGED". Very scarce cachet variety. $125.00
411030 ON - American Airlines crash at Sheddon,
Ontario, Canada. Legal cover from
411030 ON - American Airlines crash at Sheddon,
Ontario, Canada. Legal cover from
440210 - American Airlines crash at Memphis, Tennessee. Small cover from
440829b - BOAC crash at
441124 - U.S. Military aircraft crash somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Small cover from U.S. Army A.P.O. (957) postmarked Nov. 10/1944, addressed to Chicago, Illinois, with boxed two line magenta cachet "Unavoidably/Damaged in Transit" - Scarce - $250.00
NEW 491129 - American Airlines crash at Dallas, Texas - 29 November 1949. Legal size airmail cover from New York to Tulsa, Oklahoma, meter postmark NOV 28' 49, with Tulsa Post Office mimeo explanation which is unlisted in the American Air Mail Catalogue. Scarce - 75.00
511214 - Swissair crash at Amsterdam, Netherlands. Small cover addressed
to Amsterdam, variety of label from Amsterdam Post Office (slightly different
than the one shown in Nierinck) & Amsterdam
ambulance cover. Very scarce label variety and with ambulance cover. -
$400.00.
540313a - BOAC Lockheed Constellation “Belfast” crash at Singapore. Legal size registered cover from Cambridge, New Zealand to London, England. Registered cover are unusual. - $40.00
NEW 571116 – Aquila Airways Solent flying boat “Sydney” at Isle of Wight, England. Original enclosure and ambulance cover from a UK post office, addressed to Funchal, Portugal, with two line magenta cachet as shown in Nierinck. The original cover is missing. Includes small magazine article with photo of crashed aircraft. One of only two covers recorded, so Very Rare. $1,000
680408a - BOAC crash at London, England. Aerogramme from Zambia to Israel with type 'a' cachet applied in Tel Aviv. Rare from Zambia. $250.00
680408a - BOAC crash at
700727 – Flying Tiger Lines rash at Nana, Okinawa. Small cover from Oakland, Calif. to SF 96235, which was military mail to Johnna AFB, Okinawa and later at Tan Son Nhut AFB, Vietnam. Has two line magenta cachet “Damaged/Aircraft Accident”, which is unlisted in the American Air Mail Catalogue. Very rare. $200.00
850504 - Gordon Bennett Balloon Race at Palm Springs, California - balloon "Starkey", which crashed. Flight cachets & "CRASH COVER" cachet. Scarce. $25.00
850504 - Gordon Bennett Balloon Race at Palm Springs, California - balloon "Benihana", which crashed. Flight cachets & "CRASH COVER" cachet. Scarce. $25.00
The following are Aircraft Accident Reports from the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB). They are very useful for collectors of crash covers.
Aircraft Crashes - Volume I - 1934-1944, on CD-ROM. Pub. by Media Surplus,
Aircraft Crashes - Volume I I- 1945-1955, on
CD-ROM. Pub. by Media Surplus,
Aircraft Crashes - Volume 3 - 1956-1965, on CD-ROM. Pub. by Media Surplus,
TRAIN WRECK COVERS
121003 - Boston, Springfield & New York RPO Train 53 wreck at Westport, Connecticut. Small cover postmarked Boston, Massachusetts. Oct. 3/1912. Burned along bottom edge. $200.00
Southern Pacific Train Wrecks - 1914-1987,
on CD-ROM. Pub. by Media Surplus,
310919 - Small cover from train fire in Ogden & Ogden train 5, on September 19, 1931 between Hanna and Rawlins, Wyoming. On back is a label applied by a post office with a three line typed inscription reading "Damaged by fire in/Omaha & Ogden Train 5,/September 19, 1931." - $75.00
310919 Omaha and Ogden
train fire
320912 - Small cover from Southern Pacific train wreck at Crystal Lake, Calif. - Meter franking New York, NY SEP 8'32, addressed to (window envelope), with two line violet cachet "Received in bad condition at/Oakland, Calif. plus manuscript date 9/12/32 From Train Wreck plus 'CLYDE E. SMITH/CARRIER #63 M./OAKLAND, CALIF." - Scarce - US$60.00
361111 - Legal size cover from train #34 wreck at Big Sugar Creek Bridge, near Indianapolis, Indiana. Postmarked Louisville, Kentucky NOV 10/1936, addressed to Cincennati, Ohio. $200.00
1. Small cover from wreck of Ogden & LA
wreck 22 Aug. 37. Meter franking
2. Not used
3. Legal cover from wreck of Ogden & LA wreck 22 Aug. 37. Postmarked New York, NY AUG 19/1937, to Los Angeles, with two line magenta cachet "DAMAGED BY FIRE/OG&LA TR. AUG 22" - US$100.00
4. Legal cover from wreck of Ogden & LA
wreck 22 Aug. 37. Meter franking
5. Not used
6. On 28 February 1952, a flaming petrol tanker loaded with 6,800 gallons of 100 octane fuel, crashed through a guard rail and exploded on the main railway line east of Ogden, Utah. Almost immediately, a Union Pacific express train emerged from a tunnel and plunged into the flaming wreckage. The train was swept by fire and nine coaches were largely destroyed. It was the largest loss of mail in U.S. history. Legal cover - US$75.00
6A. – Another legal cover from 520228 at Ogden, Utah – US$90.00
7. NEW 4/5 January 1954. Cover damaged by R.R. Casualty at Fresno, Calif., meter postmark Jan-4'54, addressed to Fresno. Burned on left side, magenta cachet as shown in Railway Disaster Mail. Only the 2nd cover recorded. Rare. $175.00
8. Damaged by fire – June 2, 1941 OG & SF TR. 21 – no information available – large documents cover – US$40.00
9. Fire in railway storage car while enroute to Portland, Oregon – April 9, 1960 – US$75.00 – cover is not as large as a legal cover – see A46 in La Catastrophe – Whole no. 42, page 18
10. Small cover from fire in U.S. Mail car on May 4, 1946 in transit on Seaboard Air Line Railway train No. 2, with Savannah, GA Post Office mimeo label. Very scarce train wreck cover - $100.00
11. Legal cover with meter franking New York JUL-3'52, addressed to Phoenix, AZ – US$125.00 – see details below
520703.jpg
|
4 July 1952 |
Fire at North Philadelphia Station, Pennsylvania, USA |
DAMAGED BY FIRE
IN STORAGE CAR
Type 1 cachet in black or magenta
DAMAGED BY FIRE
IN STORAGE CAR
Type 2 cachet
|
Fire was discovered in the
mails aboard the Pennsylvania Railroad’s train No. 11 (New York to St.
Louis), as it pulled into the North Philadelphia Station at 12:32 a.m. on 4
July 1952. A considerable amount of the mail was destroyed. It took Post
Office workers three days to re-envelope and forwarded the salvaged mail. Press cutting
available. Ref.: Luc
van Bogaert
Robin
David Morrison & Rod Dyke |
|
|
12. Legal cover from train fire near Pocatello, Idaho on 9 April 1960. Postmarked Wichita, Kansas APR 8/1960, addressed to Salem, Oregon, so it was definitely in the fire. Slightly burned on bottom left corner. No cachet, but it was definitely in the fire. Two short newspaper clippings are included. Listed in Hoggarth & Gwynn Worldwide Train Wrecks as 600409. Very scarce. $50.00
13. Legal cover from Boston & Albany Train 143 wreck on or about 3 October 1963, includes Los Angeles Post Office mimeo & scarce ambulance cover – US$125.00
14. Cover from train wreck near Stockholm, Sweden on 6
September 1954. Meter franking at
15. Front of wrapper from Canadian National Railway (CNR) train wreck near Hornepayne, Ontario Canada on 13 February 1960. The passenger train made a head-on collision with a freight train. Details from newspapers available on request. The wrapper has a large magenta cachet “SALVAGED FROM/C.N.R TRAIN WRECK”. This is the only recorded item from this wreck, and is thus very rare. $400.00
16. Small cover from ?? (postmark illegible) to Spring Valley, California, accompanied by U.S Post Office, San Francisco mimeograph slip, explain that the cover was in a fire on Boston & Albany train 143 of Sep. 18, 1963, forwarded from Albany, NY on Sep. 19. Also, accompanied by San Francisco P.O. ambulance cover. Unlisted in “Railway Disaster Mail” by Hoggarth & Gwynn. Very scarce. $200.00.
690919 Albany Train Wreck cover 690919 Abany Ambulance
SHIP WRECK COVERS
050306 - Wreck of ship SS Cairo, which ran ashore at the port of Alexandria,
Egypt. Small mourning cover from
090228 - Wreck of ship SS Ville d'Alger collision
with SS Orleanais in
090228 Ville d'Alger
type 1.jpg
290908 - The steamer "Heimdall" ran
aground and sank near Vaxholm, Sweden on 8 September
1929, while on the way from Stockholm to Åbo and Helsink, Finland. All the passengers and crew members
were saved. On 10 September, divers recovered 209 bags of mail, together
with some other cargo. The mails were returned to Stockholm and
dried. After drying, most were forwarded, bearing the Swedish label as
shown on this cover. The label translates: "The enclosed letter has
been / damaged by water in the wreck / of steampship
'Heimdalls' on the 8 September 1929 in / Stockholm's
archipelago. / Post Director for / Stockholm District." Cover from
410128 - The Dutch steamer "SS Alhena"
ran aground at Pladdy Rock, near South Rock,
410128 SS Alhena
shipwreck 1.jpg
410128 - The Dutch steamer "SS Alhena"
ran aground at Pladdy Rock, near South Rock,
410128 SS Alhena
shipwreck 2.jpg
410128 - The Dutch steamer "SS Alhena"
ran aground at Pladdy Rock, near South Rock,
410128 SS Alhena
shipwreck 3.jpg
410128 - The Dutch steamer "SS Alhena"
ran aground at Pladdy Rock, near South Rock,
410128 SS Alhena
shipwreck 4.jpg
470320 - Cover from unlisted ship fire in Naples, Italy. Official Italian telegraph cover, postmarked Naples 20.3.47, with cachet on reverse which translates as: "Object recovered in the cinditions such it is from the fire in Naples Port". - $75.00
610200 - Unidentified ship explosion about 15 or 16 February 1961. Cover to Israel with three line Hebrew cachet reading: "This mail item was damaged when conveyed to Israel when a water pipe exploded in the ship's belly." (See Maritime Disaster Mail, page 320) - $275.00
661110 - Fire onboard the S.S. Kypros near Haifa,
Israel. Cover from ? to Tel
661110 - Fire onboard the S.S. Kypros near Haifa, Israel. Cover from Oradea, Romania to Herzlia, Israel - Three line cachet applied in Israel. $450.00
661110 SS Kypros
from Romania.jpg
DIVERTED COVERS
Small cover from
Small cover from Big Rapid, Michigan USA, postmarked 14 Sep. 1950 to Tel Aviv, Israel. The cover was diverted to Egypt (probably because of the Arab-Israeli war) and has Egyptian censor tape on the left side and top. $100.00
RECORD FLIGHT COVERS
Small cover from record flight by A.E. Clouston and Mrs. Kirby Green, from London, England to Cape Town, South Africa and return. The cover has the green label for the flight, it is postmarked Kaapstad and has an additional circular date stamp from the Capetown Municipal Airport, and is backstamped after the return at London on 23 Nov. 37. A nice clean cover and very scarce. $500.00
Clouston
record flight cover.jpg
DAMAGED BY FIRE COVERS
Legal size cover postmarked Bognor Regis, Sussex sometime in March 1974. The cover has been burned on the top and left edges. A label has been attached by the Bognar Regis post office explaining that it was damaged by fire in a pillar box. $30.00
Legal size cover postmarked Portsmouth, Hants. 20 July 1970. The cover has been burned on the top and right edges. A label has been attached by the Portsmouth post office explaining that it was damaged in the post--probably by fire in a pillar box. $30.00
Small airmail cover from Kinston, North Carolina, USA to Hoogeveen, Netherlands, in July 1974, badly damaged (probably in mail handling machine). U.S. Post Office Kinston, NC “ambulance” cover and hand written note regarding the damaged cover, from Tour Supervisor, Kinston Post Office. $20.00. Scan available on request
Rev. 25 Sep. 2018
