ISLE OF MAN AIRBORNE MAIL by Arthur J.P.Massey Under this heading historical, emergency, unofficial and Official air mail services are covered. as well as souvenir mail produced privately to commemorate special events on the Island. Text notes are cross-referenced to a bibliography Which appears at the end of the article. and in brackets refer to illustrations. Abbreviations used : ALS Airwav Letter Stamp FFC First flight cover LFC Last flight cover

Historical

During the Daily Mail •Circuit of Britain• in 1912' Gustav Hamel called at the island. and one card. postmarked Douglas 7 August, is known to have been flown.

Emergency

1. To minimize the effects of German U-boat operations in the Irish Sea. 1917-18. RN seaplanes were used for an emergency air mail service between Lake Windermere and the Island. 2. As a result of the UK postal strike Which began 20 January. 1972. licenses were granted to private firms and individuals to deliver mail. Mr. G. L. Ouirk of Douglas, calling his service POST MANNINAGH. ISLE OF MAN, being one these. For mail flown Outside the Island he produced three imperforate air stamps on 1st March. 25p blue and green and £l black and green depicting TT motorcyclist, common to both values; and 50p red and blue. a view of Douglas Harbour. Printed souvenir covers were flown on the First day, reading in red 'OFFICIAL FIRST DAY AIRMAIL / POST OFFICE LICENSED' at top. •Via Post Manninagh/lsle of Man' at bottom, on an Outline Island map In yellow With the ‘Three Legs' emblem in red and jet-aircraft. indigo. Super-imposed. A small double-ring mark DOUGLAS/ ISLE OF MAN/I MAR,'1971 was used to cancel these stamps.

Unofficial

In 1932 an unofficial air mail service operated by Amphibious Air Lines Ltd. between Blackpool and the Island. has been recorded

Official

The first occasion on which the post Office granted contracts for the carriage of first class mail by air at ordinary letter rate. the Isle Of Man included. was 20 August. 1934. post Office contracts servng the Island are listed below in chronological order. 1. Railway Air Services Ltd. 1934. 20th August – 29th September Commemorative envelopes used included a symbolic design (1) in blue and black, issued by the parent company. Imperial Airways Ltd. and a UK map showing network of routes covered (2) in black. by Francis J. Field Ltd. Within this framework Captain A. Gordon Store, whose signature (7) appears on some souvenir items. operated the Island's shuttle service, using the following timetable : Belfast (Aldegrove) dep 10.10 Manchester dep. 16.40 I.O.M. (Ronaldsway) dep. 11.05 I.O.M. dep 17.45 Manchester (Barton) arr. 1205 Belfast arr. 1835 Postmarks on covers can be verified as flown by reference to this table. but see next paragraph for some exceptions. On August 20. and due to adverse weather conditions. only the morning schedule was flown. Mails addressed to the Island from Manchester and all points south were not flown until 21 August. Additionally. Glasgow mail for Douglas via Belfast was overflown to Manchester in error and was returned to the Island by surface route on 21 August. Recommended further reading (4) No first night cachets were used. but some LFC carry a purple cachet (Il). 2. Blackpool and West Coast Air Services 1935 February — 30th September No commemorative stationery was used on this, a first contract period, though examples of the Company's crest (3) are to be found. in black on envelope fronts and in green on the flaps. The latter are rarer. First-flight cachets introduced the service between the Island and Liverpool and include (5) applied in purple. black or red. On envelope fronts. Or a combination of two colours impressed on the front and back of individual envelopes. A single line cachet BY AIR MAIL, FIRST FLIGHT in purple, is to be found and was applied in Liverpool. A Company date-stamp I FEB 1935, in purple. was also used on mail. Signatures recorded on souvenir mail included Messrs. J. W. Mason and Harold p. L. Smith. the Company's Station Superintendent and Traffic Manager respectively and Captains J. C. Higgins and O. E. Armstrong, Chief Pilot and Pilot. 3. United Airways Ltd. (British Airways Ltd.) 1935-36 1st November • 31st October No commemorative stationery Was used during this contract, The alternative wording, UNITED or BRITISH. to be found on cachets, resulted from the amalgamation, towards the end of 1935, of three airlines, UNITED. HILLMAN and SPARTAN to form BRITISH AIRWAYS. Cachets include a first flight (8) red. another (10) in red, used during the contract period serving the Island and Liverpool. and a last-flight cachet (12) in red. Hall Caine Airport, Ramsey, was used by the Company at this time. One pilot's signature. Mr. L. T. C. Barber. is on souvenir mail. together with another, V. F. O ManeIIy. 4. West Coast Air Services Ltd. 1936-37 2nd November — 25th September The Company. with its name shortened from BLACKPOOL & WEST COAST AIR SERVICES LTD. (Heading 2 above) was granted this. a second contract, between the Island and Liverpool. and again issued no commemorative stationery. First-flights cachets include (6) in black or red on cover fronts. and two similar cachets (9) one incorporating the words ISLE OF MAN. as illustrated, in red; and one reading LIVERPOOL in black. Envelopes carrying both cachets exist. one on cover face and one back. The use of cachet (9) in purple is referred to under heading 5 below. One pilot's signature on souvenir mail is recorded, that of Captain G. T. Greenhaigh. 5. Isle of Man Air Services Ltd. 1937-39 26th September — 3rd September. The Company. an amalgamation Of WEST COAST AIR SERVICES. MANX AIRWAYS RAILWAY AIR SERVICES and ISLE OF MAN STEAM PACKET CO gave no publicity to the granting of the mail contract, Souvenir items, therefore. do not apparently exist. and no commemorative stationery was used. Two cachets are recorded on. mail flown during this period. One (13) in red. struck on back of envelope addressed to Ronaldsway from London, and the Other (9) still in use 'rom the previous contract (Heading 4 above) . struck in purple and worded ISLE OF MAN. on back of cover, together with a purple date- stamp 24 JUNE 1938. addressed to the Island and posted from the 25th Philatelic Congress at Cambridge 22 June 1938. This was railed to Liverpool and then flown to the Island.

SPECIAL EVENTS

1. Fourth International Air Race London—Isle of Man 1939 27 May The Misses Mabel and Sheila Glass, competitors in this event hand-coloured twelve souvenir covers incorporating the 'Three Legs' emblem in red, blue and yellow, all of which were flown. On the backs appears two cachets, a three lined 'HATFIELD /HERTS / 27 MAY 1939' in purple (starting point), and the other as (27) but date reading 27 MAY, in black (finishing point) . The Douglas 29 MAY 1939 POST EARLY IN THE DAY postmark is on the front. The initial or signatures of competitors taking the first three places also appear on the back. G. de Havilland, Alex Henshaw, and E. W. Percival. 2. The Manx Derby and Tynwald Air Race 1939 29 May These events which followed the International Air Race, were commemorated, again by the Misses Glass, with eleven hand- coloured postcards. Cachet (27) in black, and a Douglas post-mark as before, but 30 MAY. were struck on the fronts; the backs recording the race circuit on a map Of the Island surmounted by the 'Three Legs' emblem. all hand-coloured as before. Signature of the DERBY and TYNWALD winners, Alex Henshaw and H. R. A. Edwards, also appear on the backs of these souvenirs. Bibliography 1. AERO HANDBOOK No. 8: BRITISH AIR MAILS 1784-1946 complied by Mr. N. C. Baldwin and published 1947. 2. THE AERO FIELD June 1945, page 96. Its existence recorded in an article by Mr. Eric Scott. 3. THE AIR MAILS OF THE BRITISH ISLES by Mr. H. Stanley Redgrove. Printed 1940. 4. THE AERO FIELD December 1969. Page 139. RAILWAY AIR SERVICES British Inland Air Posts article by N. C. Baldwin. 5. GREAT BRITAIN Airway Letter Stamps and Services by Mr. N. C. Baldwin published in 1966 by Francis J. Field Ltd. 6. THE AERO FIELD, December 1939.