1927 RICHARD E BYRD TRANSATLANTIC FLIGHT COVER + LET (03/13/2011)...

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1927 RICHARD E BYRD TRANSATLANTIC FLIGHT COVER + LETTER

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1927 RICHARD E BYRD TRANSATLANTIC FLIGHT COVER + LETTER

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Sold Date: 03/13/2011
Channel: Online Auction
Source: eBay
Category: Stamps

Very interesting cover "franked" with two uncancelled US 10c special delivery postage stamps, printed "Congress of the United States/ House of Representatives" corner card, hand printed cachet reading, "Via U.S. Trans-Atlantic First Flight Commander Byrd, Pilot AMERICA," signed R. E. Byrd, addressed to Mrs. Elizabeth M. Leake, Rue Auguste 16, Colombes, Paris France, Care Madame Sirel Geal, Paris; (on reverse) return address of John B. Miller, Canandaigua, New York, again with Commander R. E. Byrd's signature. Included with the envelope is a one page letter, written on U.S. Government watermarked stationery, reading, in part, "Jun 25 1927 ... John is sending this letter by Commander Byrd addressed to you. The envelope is empty, so please carefully preverve it and send to John. It will be of great value and John does not want it harmed in the least. We do so hope this letter gets through ... [signed] Augusta." Accompanying the lot is a 3-1/2 x 4-1/2 photograph of AMERICA, the airplane in which Byrd and his crew crossed the Atlantic. The flight began at 5:24 AM, Jun 29 1927, when the monoplane AMERICA took off from Roosevelt Field, Long Island, New York to Paris, France, with Byrd as chief pilot, accompanied by Bert Acosta, Bernt Balchen and LT George Norville. After being plagued by thick fog the entire flight, the foursome crash landed 42 hours later on the shore at Ver-sur-Mer, France on Jul 2 1927, with minimum damage to the aircraft. No one was injured, and they were able to paddle ashore in the emergency raft. We have seen pilot favor letters, which were carried outside the mails, previously from this flight. Cover and letter in fine condition, photo practically mint, except for negligable bend, hardly visible, at top right corner . *** We have been in the postal history business since 1953 and are members of the American Air Mail Society, American Stamp Dealers Association, American Philatelic Society, National Stamp Dealers Association, Philatelic Traders Society (Great Britain), Canadian Stamp Dealers Association (Canada), International Federation of Stamp Dealers Associations, Collectors Club of New York and numerous other philatelic organizations.