Lot 732
732
'HANDLEY PAGE' FLIGHT Due to mechanical problems with their plane, the proposed Handley Page Transatlantic flight was postponed and eventually cancelled. Following the successful Transatlantic flight by Alcock and Brown, the crew decided instead to fly to New York. The plane took off for New York on July 4th, but crashed in Nova Scotia. It was not repaired until October 9th. The mail was rushed by train to New York where it missed the departure of the Zeppelin 'R 34' and eventually reached England by ship.
cover 1919, $1.00 on 15c Scarlet (C2, Gibbons 143), tied by St. John's Jun 9, 1919 wavy line machine pmk. on a light buff 'Handley Page' flight cover (AAMC #4) to England, additional Harbour Grace Jun 14 pmk., cover has illustrated corner card of the Imperial Tobacco Co., with original contents, a letter dated June 9th on company stationery with an illustrated letterhead, it mentions the Vickers Vimy Airship and that Allcock [sic] and Brown will be successful, unfortunately for the sender, all mail postmarked June 9th was diverted to the Handley Page flight, thus the letter was carried on the failed flight and not on the succesful Alcock and Brown flight as the sender intended, the cover has some light staining, the letter is aged and brittle with splitting along file folds and extensive edge faults,

Details
cover 1919, $1.00 on 15c Scarlet (C2, Gibbons 143), tied by St. John's Jun 9, 1919 wavy line machine pmk. on a light buff 'Handley Page' flight cover (AAMC #4) to England, additional Harbour Grace Jun 14 pmk., cover has illustrated corner card of the Imperial Tobacco Co., with original contents, a letter dated June 9th on company stationery with an illustrated letterhead, it mentions the Vickers Vimy Airship and that Allcock [sic] and Brown will be successful, unfortunately for the sender, all mail postmarked June 9th was diverted to the Handley Page flight, thus the letter was carried on the failed flight and not on the succesful Alcock and Brown flight as the sender intended, the cover has some light staining, the letter is aged and brittle with splitting along file folds and extensive edge faults,

OTHERWISE COVER IS VERY FINE, RARE, AAMC $1,800.00, Unitrade C$1,500.00 for use on ordinary cover

Lot Essay

Expertization: signed E. Diena, with 1981 E. Diena certificate

Note: This unsuccessful Transatlantic flight carried 105 covers and ten official covers, all of which were postmarked June 9th and were simply assigned to the flight from among the Transatlantic mail already on hand.
photo est.