A crowd of people around Gustav Hamel and his Bleriot monoplane during the 1911 coronation aerial post flights.
THE
CORONATION AERIAL POST FLIGHTS
CORONATION
AERIAL POST PHOTOS
THE
CORONATION AERIAL POST
SUMMARY
OF THE CORONATION AERIAL POST FLIGHTS
A vintage postcard from the June 22, 1911 coronation of King George V and Queen Mary, showing the King and Queen. |
Between September 9th to 26th, 1911, aerial post flights, organized by Captain Walter G. Windham and sanctioned by the Postmaster General of the Royal Mail, Herbert L. Samuels, were made between Hendon airfield, in London, and Windsor Great Park, in Windsor, to commemorate the coronation of King George V and Queen Mary, and these were the first official air mail flights in Great Britain. The first flight, of about 25 miles, was flown in 15 minutes, on Saturday, September 9th, from 4:58 p.m. to 5:13 p.m., by Gustav Hamel, in a Bleriot monoplane, which he landed near the tomb of Queen Victoria. He made a return flight, with official dispatches, shortly after landing, at 6:05 p.m., and landed at Hendon airfield at 6:32 p.m.
Three other aerial post flights, with three other pilots, were canceled on September 9th, due to high winds, but beginning on September 11th, aerial post flights were also flown by Clement H. Greswell, in a Bleriot monoplane, E. F. Driver, from South Africa, in a Farman biplane, and Charles L. A. Hubert, from France, in a Farman biplane, who crashed his biplane, while carrying 200 pounds of air mail, breaking broke both his legs. Rain washed out the aerial post flights of September 13th and 15th, though special Windsor to London flights were made on September 16th and 18th. On September 18th, some of these flights were flown by Gustav Hamel, Clement Greswell, and Lieutenant R. A. Cammell, of the Royal Engineers, who was killed, when his airplane collapsed, 90 feet over Hendon airfield, in front of about 500 spectators.
125,562 pieces of air mail were flown on these flights, including 98,304 post cards and 98,304 covers, of which 1,187 were privileged post cards and 970 were privileged covers,(1) and the official coronation "First U.K. Aerial Post" cards and covers, showing a biplane flying past Windsor Castle, were printed in various colors, such red, brown, green, and purple, the last of which were reserved for the privileged mail. On the first flight, on September 9th, only privileged air mail was flown.
Though these flights were the first official air mail flights in Great Britain, the first air mail that was carried in Great Britain was flown from Blackpool to the Southport area, by Claude Grahame-White, on August 17, 1910. The first official air mail flight occurred on February 18, 1911, when 23 year-old French aviator Henri Pequet carried about 6,500 pieces of air mail, in a Sommer biplane, about six miles, from Allahabad to Naini, in India, in about thirteen minutes, during an industrial and agricultural exposition. The first official air mail in the United States was flown on September 23, 1911, when Earle Ovington carried air mail during the Sheepshead Bay air meet, on Long Island, New York, and air mail service was provided daily, during this air meet, until October 2nd.
(1) Page 104, Max Kronstein, Pioneer Airpost Flights of the World 1830-1935, American Air Mail Society, Washington, 1978.
Four 1911 newspaper articles about these flights can be read, on
this web site, at
ENGLAND
TRYING MAIL BY AEROPLANE
BRITISH
AVIATOR FALLS
BRITISH
AVIATOR KILLED
BRITISH
OFFICER KILLED IN FALL
GUSTAU HAMEL
CLEMENT GRESWELL
CHARLES L.A.
HUBERT
A closeup of the photo at the top of this web page, showing Gustav Hamel in the cockpit of his Bleriot monoplane. He would later win the 1913 London Aerial Derby, on September 20th, while flying a Morane-Saulnier monoplane and disappear over the English Channel, on May 23, 1914, while flying a Morane-Saulnier monoplane, from Paris, France. |
One of the Bleriot monoplanes, belonging to Gustav Hamel or Clement Greswell, that were used for the 1911 Coronation Aerial Post flights. |
Gustav Hamel and Clement Greswell loading air mail into a Bleriot monoplane. |
Charles L. A. Hubert, in his Farman biplane, during the coronation flights. "Aerial Mail" is painted on the underside of the bottom wing of his aircraft. He crashed this biplane at Hendon airfield, during the coronation aerial post flights, on September 11th, while taking off with eight bags of mail, and broke both his legs. |
E. F. Driver in the Farman biplane that he may have used for some of the coronation aerial post flights. This photo was taken at Hendon airfield. |
A closeup of the photo on the left, showing E. F. Driver. |
Hendon airfield, around 1910, showing its hangars and some aircraft on the ground. This photo may have been taken during an air race, as there is a sign at the center of the airfield that says "starter". |
Though postmarked for September 9th, 1911, this "First U.K. Aerial Post" post card, printed in brown, was carried on one of the flights that were made after this date, as the only post cards that were carried on the first flight were the purple ones, signifying privileged air mail. |
The reverse side of the post card on the left, on which someone wrote: "I wonder if you will receive many by this post." The back of the post card has an official printed caution, stating that "Unless posted in the SPECIAL BOXES at the above establishments missives will NOT be conveyed by Aerial Post." These establishments were: Army and Navy Stores, Arding & Hobbs, John Barker, John Barnes, Benetfinks, D. H. Evans, Gamages, Harrod's, London Aerodrome, Selfridges, Whiteley's, and General Buildings, in Aldwych. The cost of the post cards were 6 1/2 Pence, with stamp, for inland mail, and the post card states that net profits will be give to public charity. The air mail for the coronation flights was collected until September 15th. |
A green coronation flight post card, postmarked for September 9th, with advertising from the Molassine Company, of Greenwich, London. The red imprint, on the front of the card, says "Containing 5,000 communications from THE MOLASSINE COMPANY, Ltd." |
The reverse side of the post card on the left which also has advertising for Molassine dog foods. The advertising asks: "Truly we are making rapid progress, what with THE ART OF FLYING and MOLASSINE DOG FOODS Who can predict what next?" It also asks the receiver to prominently display the post card for a few days and ask their local newspaper reporter to mention it in his next issue. |
Another post card, from the coronation flights, which is printed in green and postmarked for September 9th. The sender wrote on the back of this post card that "I expect the day is not far distant when you will travel in the same manner as this card." |
Gustav Hamel in a monoplane. |
A day-by-day summary of the coronation aerial post flights.
The American Air Mail Society, American
Air Mail Catalogue, Washington, 1974-1985.
Max Kronstein, Pioneer Airpost Flights
of the World 1830-1935, American Air Mail Society, Washington, 1978.
New York Herald, "British Officer Killed
in Fall", New York, September 18, 1911.
New York Tribune, "British Aviator
Killed", New York, September 18, 1911.
THE
FIRST UK AERIAL POST 1911
1911
THE FIRST AERIAL POST. WINDSOR
THE
ROYAL PHILATELIC SOCIETY LONDON
RARE
POSTCARD - "1ST U.K. AERIAL POST". 1911
THE
STORY OF THE FIRST AIRMAIL
