NEW ZEALAND AIR MAIL

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22826, 10 March 1936, Page 3

NEW ZEALAND AIR MAIL

POINTS ABOUT NEW SERVICE EXAMPLES OF QUICKER TRANSIT The extreme ends of the Dominion are being brought much closer together in n postal sense by the Government’s decision to utilise tile air where the accelerated service is desired by the sender. Many intermediate centres will also benefit. The improved transit times through this marked advance in mail service commencing on Monday, March 10, have been worked nut in detail as they apply in a very large number of places in the Dominion, and this information is available at post offices. The air mail rate of 2d per ounce for correspondence for delivery within New Zealand is not a special surcharge, but is the total postage in respect to every article forwarded by air. The service is not limited to letters, but can be utilised for any postal packet where quicker despatch justifies payment of 2d per ounce. Air mail packets should be clearly marked on the top left-hand corner “ By Air Mail.” It is important to indicate the mode of transit in addition to paying a special charge, as air mail is sorted and handled separately and is despatched in special bugs of blue material. TIME-SAVING EXAMPLES. The saving in transit time will vary according to the time of posting and will be most marked in connection with letters despatched to distant cities. The time-saving as it will benefit Auckland mails despatched overnight by express to Palmerston North and thence south by air will amount to 20 hours for letters to Christchurch. 27 hours to Dunedin, and 24 hours to Invercargill. In the reverse direction. Invercargill letters for Auckland will arrive 24 hours earlier when sent by air. Dunedin’s air mail advantage in communicating with Auckland will be 24 hours daily, except on Mondays for 7.30 a.m. to about 10.30 a.m. postings, which will show an acceleration (compared with the train and steamer route) of 48 hours.

Invercargill correspondence for Christchurch, posted after 12.50 p.m., will be accelerated by air mail from four to six hours; the gain in respect to all Wellington mail will be 15 hours, and to Auckland 24 hours. One outstanding improvement arising from the use of aeroplanes on trunk routes is that customers of the Post Office will find their time limits for posting extended very substantially. Missing' the mail once meant 24 hours delay on many long routes. For instance, by using the air after the normal mail from Christchurch for the North Island has closed, there will be a gain (compared with waiting for the next mail) of 15 hours for postings up to about 12.30 p.m. next day for Wellington, and 24 hours on correspondence to Auckland. “ Missing the mail ” thus ceases to be a serious disadvantage it only involves payment of 2d per ounce, and marking the letter “ By Air Mail.” The air service between Hokitika and South Westland being the normal method of mail transport, no extra postage is necessary on this route. However, senders of correspondence to and from South Westland who wish to take advantage of the accelerated transit afforded by other air lines used by the Post Office in Nerv Zealand will require to pay the general air mail charge of 2d per ounce. In the meantime it ifl not practicable to use the cast coast route for air mails between Napier and Gis borne.

AIR MAIL FOR OVERSEAS LETTERS, Delivery in New Zealand of overseas correspondence can be facilitated if the senders pay a Id per ounce in addition to the normal charge for postage in the country of origin. These letters should be marked on the left hand top corner “ By Air Mail in New Zealand.” This will ensure that immediately on arrival at any port used by overseas vessels for landing mails they will be sent forward by a suitable air mail route. The Post Office administrations in all parts of the world are being advised of this arrangement, but it is suggested that New Zealand correspondents should directly inform those with whom they are in contact. Philatelists have taken keen interest in every distinctive postal development, and will be given an opportunity of obtaining souvenirs of New Zealand’s first regular official air mail, although there are to be no special first-day covers. During the first week of the new service, collectors who present air mail correspondence at post offices may secure hand dated impressions on the stamps, and this correspondence will be also dated with the time of receipt. New Zealand’s air mail stamps are of the Id, 3d and fid denominations, but ordinary postage stamps may be used for the special air mail service.