incredible, Bob. I love how few of the covers are from, to me, known mass-market cachet makers and how many were in such incredibly small batches. Talk about rarity.
I had never heard of the C-47 called a Skytrain before. I knew it, as a military transport, solely as the Dakota among US nomenclature. Is that a British usage?
mnay of the cachets are beautiful, fanciful, and whimsical. I like the many unoffical APO cancels, which seems particularly appropriate. And I thought the cachet commemorating the British and US airmen who died an essential component. Few remember that "war" part of the Cold War.
David
Actually C47 Skytrain is the more correct name, as used by the Douglas Aircraft Company.
Nice exhibit!
Excellent job, I enjoyed looking at the exhibit.
Alyn
Thanks for the kind words all. David, I am not a aviation enthusiast so I am not sure where the name came from. I did try to fact check most of the info written on the covers/inserts and actually found 2 errors (1 spelling, 1 date). I saw that the C-47 was called a Skytrain so I did not question it. I did not even know before now that it was also called a Dakota. Filing that away for Jeopardy or Trivial Pursuit.
Bob
The C-47, a modified DC-3 was one of the most useful aviation workhorses ever built. There were over 13,000 built during WW II and its immediate aftermath. I had the chance to fly on them in 1959-'60 as they were the only decent sized cargo planes that could land on the packed sand beach that was called an airstrip on the northern part of Baffin Island to bring fresh veggies (Sometimes)] and mail (Even sometimesier) to the station there
In Viet Nam a few were fitted with a high capacity gatling gun and called "Magic Dragons" as in "Puff, you're dead" that could slowly circle a target and destroy it.
At least one is still flown around the USA to airshows and other events.
The DC-3 /C-47 had dozens of designations as over time it served in different branches of the military of several countries and the platform underwent numerous modificalions to solve different problems.
I too flew in a C47. On my discharge from the Air Corps in March 1946, I made arrangements with Base Operations to get the first plane that was heading to Florida. I actually lived in Brooklyn, NY but was going to Florida for a vacation and staying with my grandparents in Miami Beach. The closest I could get was Jacksonville, FL so I took it, and it was in a C47. No seats in the cargo area, so we (others going also) sat on boxes. We were so happy to be civilians again that we probably would have sat on hot coals.
Took the bus from Jacksonville to Miami Beach.
By the way, the army paid per diem to Brooklyn, so my return trip to NY was more than covered.
Richaard
Just an FYI - About 4 years ago I submitted an article for the First Days magazine based on my Berlin Airlift Exhibition. It was just published. Unfortunately, you need to be a member to read the article from the website, but I'm just posting the link here anyway.
http://www.afdcs.org/newsblog.html
I hope I will be forgiven for posting this here, as it is not a 50th anniversary cover but a 100 day commemorative cover, posted from Charlottenburg, Berlin:
I won this on Roy's eBay store.
Lovely cover!
David
Ottawa, Canada
nice to see a Berlon overprint on a Berlin overflight
Two 20th anniversary Berlin airlift cards with the same commemorative postmarks:
I would like to draw your attention to an excellent new exhibit just posted on Stamporama by Bob Parkin commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the Berlin Airlift. You can see Bob's exhibit by visiting the Stamporama Exhibits section or by clicking here to jump to the exhibit.
Regards ... Tim.
re: Berlin Airlift - 50th Anniversary First Day of Issue, by Bob Parkin
incredible, Bob. I love how few of the covers are from, to me, known mass-market cachet makers and how many were in such incredibly small batches. Talk about rarity.
I had never heard of the C-47 called a Skytrain before. I knew it, as a military transport, solely as the Dakota among US nomenclature. Is that a British usage?
mnay of the cachets are beautiful, fanciful, and whimsical. I like the many unoffical APO cancels, which seems particularly appropriate. And I thought the cachet commemorating the British and US airmen who died an essential component. Few remember that "war" part of the Cold War.
David
re: Berlin Airlift - 50th Anniversary First Day of Issue, by Bob Parkin
Actually C47 Skytrain is the more correct name, as used by the Douglas Aircraft Company.
Nice exhibit!
re: Berlin Airlift - 50th Anniversary First Day of Issue, by Bob Parkin
Excellent job, I enjoyed looking at the exhibit.
Alyn
re: Berlin Airlift - 50th Anniversary First Day of Issue, by Bob Parkin
Thanks for the kind words all. David, I am not a aviation enthusiast so I am not sure where the name came from. I did try to fact check most of the info written on the covers/inserts and actually found 2 errors (1 spelling, 1 date). I saw that the C-47 was called a Skytrain so I did not question it. I did not even know before now that it was also called a Dakota. Filing that away for Jeopardy or Trivial Pursuit.
Bob
re: Berlin Airlift - 50th Anniversary First Day of Issue, by Bob Parkin
The C-47, a modified DC-3 was one of the most useful aviation workhorses ever built. There were over 13,000 built during WW II and its immediate aftermath. I had the chance to fly on them in 1959-'60 as they were the only decent sized cargo planes that could land on the packed sand beach that was called an airstrip on the northern part of Baffin Island to bring fresh veggies (Sometimes)] and mail (Even sometimesier) to the station there
In Viet Nam a few were fitted with a high capacity gatling gun and called "Magic Dragons" as in "Puff, you're dead" that could slowly circle a target and destroy it.
At least one is still flown around the USA to airshows and other events.
The DC-3 /C-47 had dozens of designations as over time it served in different branches of the military of several countries and the platform underwent numerous modificalions to solve different problems.
re: Berlin Airlift - 50th Anniversary First Day of Issue, by Bob Parkin
I too flew in a C47. On my discharge from the Air Corps in March 1946, I made arrangements with Base Operations to get the first plane that was heading to Florida. I actually lived in Brooklyn, NY but was going to Florida for a vacation and staying with my grandparents in Miami Beach. The closest I could get was Jacksonville, FL so I took it, and it was in a C47. No seats in the cargo area, so we (others going also) sat on boxes. We were so happy to be civilians again that we probably would have sat on hot coals.
Took the bus from Jacksonville to Miami Beach.
By the way, the army paid per diem to Brooklyn, so my return trip to NY was more than covered.
Richaard
re: Berlin Airlift - 50th Anniversary First Day of Issue, by Bob Parkin
Just an FYI - About 4 years ago I submitted an article for the First Days magazine based on my Berlin Airlift Exhibition. It was just published. Unfortunately, you need to be a member to read the article from the website, but I'm just posting the link here anyway.
http://www.afdcs.org/newsblog.html
re: Berlin Airlift - 50th Anniversary First Day of Issue, by Bob Parkin
I hope I will be forgiven for posting this here, as it is not a 50th anniversary cover but a 100 day commemorative cover, posted from Charlottenburg, Berlin:
I won this on Roy's eBay store.
re: Berlin Airlift - 50th Anniversary First Day of Issue, by Bob Parkin
Lovely cover!
David
Ottawa, Canada
re: Berlin Airlift - 50th Anniversary First Day of Issue, by Bob Parkin
nice to see a Berlon overprint on a Berlin overflight
re: Berlin Airlift - 50th Anniversary First Day of Issue, by Bob Parkin
Two 20th anniversary Berlin airlift cards with the same commemorative postmarks: