MAILS BY AIR

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 73, Issue 425, 17 November 1930, Page 8

MAILS BY AIR

A GROWING SERVICE ‘ SPEED KILLS DISTANCE’’ NEW ZEALAND IN LINE Now that New Zealand is about to embark upon air mail services it is interesting to review what, has been achieved in the carnage or mails by air in other parts of trie world. In a comparatively short space or time, the air mail services have been extended in a really phenomenal manner, until to-day there are few countries which have not adopted that system of carrying mails. In Air, the official publication of the Air League of Great. Britain, there appears an article ueaiing with the history of air mails, and many of the facts quoted are of interest in view of the recently-announced proposals of the New Zealand Government.

“During the siege of Paris in 1870,” states the writer, “when that city was completely cut off by the Prussian army, the first experiments were made to convey mail Uy air to and from the city and to maintain communications. Balloons were sent up from Paris containing mails and carrier pigeons; these latter were employed to carry back from the Provinces despatches, private mail, copies of the Journal Official, and, on occasions, the English Times. This was made possible through micrography, an art which developed rapidly at this time. In all, fifty-five postal balloons wore despatched, the first leaving on September 23, 1870, and the last on January 28, .1871. Of these two were lost at sea, eleven fell tn other Continental countries, three were captured by the Prussians, two fell in Germany, and the remainder landed in FranceThey carried 238 passengers, about ten tons of letters and newspapers, and 384 carrier pigeons.

Early Beginnings “About 1871 air post, to all intents and purposes, ceased, as the ordinary means of conveyance were sufficient for the needs of individuals. Only in exceptional circumstances could such means be. utilised. In New Zealand, for instance, pigeon services were operated from 1898 to September. 1908, from Great Barrier Island and Mirotiro Island to the mainland. “Semi-official air mail flights were made in France in 1910; Great Britain and South Africa, 191.1: uermany, Argentine. and Sweden, 1912, other countries soon following suit. Official air mail of regular operation, however, was not in force until March 30. 1918, when a postal service between Vienna, Cracow, and Lemberg was inaugurated. Hard on the heels of Austria followed the United States, which established its first official air mail on May 15. 1918. between Washington and New York, a distance of 201 miles. That this air mail is an important factor in the business life of the American is shown by the fact that, besides ordinary commercial air routes, there are to-day no less than 27.667 miles of air mail routes in regular operation, the majority of them working day and night. “The first real attempt to carry mail bv air in England was on the occasion of the Coronation of King George Vand Queen Mary. Flights were made Detween London (Hendon) and Windsor, special cards and covers being sold for these flights for the benefit of charity. From June, 1918, to 1919 an air mail service was run both ways between London and Faris, out this was operated by the Royal Air Force, official correspondence and documents only being carried- Air mail for general use by the public was commenced in July, 1920. and has been In operation ever since.

Not Appreciated “Complaints have been made that insufficient use is made of the air mail, and that this is the case *lll not be denied, but it is doubtful whether one person in a thousand of the total population in the United Kingdom has any real conception of what the arc mail is and how it can be used. No one nowadays would dream of trying to run a business without some form of ad-

vertisement, and there are well-known cases of old-established businesses, holding practically a monopoly, which have ceased to exist, or have been merged into other concerns, simply because of their neglect, wnrul or otherwise, of this vital form or Business in-

“Figures show that during December. 1929. on the England-India, air mail alone. 40,009 letters were flown weekly —a total of 160,000 for the month, and yer not one of those letters advertised commercial firm, apart from the pubby air other than by the small blue label printed, ‘By air man,’ and then only if the sender had taken the trouble to obtain such a label. In many cases ‘by air mail’-was simply written on the cover- No foreign country using the air mail is without, its series of special air mail stamps, which sre in themselves not only an advertisement, hut also an additional source of revenue. as stamp dealers and collectors all over the world in their hundreds of thousands purchase used sets. Assuming that one million tTealers and collectors each bought only one 3d unused air mail stamp, the revenue from this sale alone would amount to £12.500. and these figures can be taken .is ridlculouslv low. Snc.h a source of urofit would not be ovffrioOKed by a .•mmercial firm, apart from the publicity gained. The value of the stamps ns -advertisements is demonstrated by the fact that many business houses have for some lime placed on their letters and envelopes ‘stamp posters' extolling their goods or emphasising their business slogans. Among these will be found Imperial Airways, Ltd., who use the slogans, ‘Use the Air Mail’ and ‘Give your Letters Wings? That the Post Office itself admits the importance of advertising Is seen by the cancellation of stamps on letters which urge us to ‘Buy British Goods,’ ‘Post Early? etc., and yet the obvious publicity of the air mail stamp is coldshouldered, and the authorities can aee no useful purpose in such an issue. There is also an extraordinary Jack of interest in the branch Post Offices in the air mail- Ono office in the Strand still proudly displays a poster to the effect that the public may despatch mails, etc., by the. Handler Pago Transport. Ltd.—a concern which ceased to ovist over six years agoExisting Service* ‘•Letter air mails may be despatched daily from England to all countries on the Continent (except Russia) for an air fee of 2d to 4d an ounce (according to the country) in addition to the ordinary postage, etc.; these are in

many cases delivered the, next day. and in specific cases the same day, If posted at the G.P.O. before 7 a-m.; wnerc there is no ‘through’ air route, combined air and ordinary service is employed. Letter mail from Europe to certain States in South America is flown the whole way, with tne exception of that portion of the route over the Southern Atlantic. It costs from Ss 6d to 4s 2d per half ounce, but the saving in time amounts to from nine to thirteen days over the ordinary service. The direct India Air Service has accelerated the delivery of mails in Persia, India, Straits Settlements. East Indies. China, and Australia very considerably. and the air mail fee over this route is from 2d to 7d a half-ounce.” Alter referring to other air mail routes, the writer concluded: “ ‘Speed annihilates distance’ is a truism which might well be adapted as a slogan for the air mail, and it is inconcevable that this form of conveyance should be neglected in favour of the old methods, by which so much time is lost. Tho advantage of tho air mail to the business man in the forwarding of samples, tenders, drafts, letters of credit, etc., ts inestimable, and to rhe private individual it gives closer and more ftequent contact with those ro’ettves and friends whose occupafinr .■ have taken them to distant lands nnff to wnom the arrival of mail from ‘home’ is an event, of eager anticipation.”