I have few first flight covers. Are there any collectors of these in this group? What are the different themes or subjects that people concentrate on with these covers?
My stamp and cover collecting is, well, eclectic. A little of this, a little of that, with emphasis on this, and that, and the other. I am mostly driven by the places I’ve lived, experiences I’ve had, and just about anything having to do with airplanes and airmail, regardless of the country.
I have a “complete set†of two FFC’s for the West-East leg of A.M. 93, which started in Phoenix and terminated in El Paso. One (A.M. 93 E 16) is postmarked in my home town, Silver City, New Mexico, the other (A.M. 93 E 17) in nearby Hurley, where my grandparents lived. Each is backstamped in El Paso.
All of the Silver City FFCs I've seen have the same lightly-inked rubber stamp cachet. The copy I'm showing you is franked by the 1943 "Nations United" stamp, which was issued the day I was born, January 14.
I have never seen a single FFC from the East-West leg of A.M. 93, which terminated in Phoenix, much less any postmarked in Silver City or Hurley. According to the Aerodacious web site, they have twice the value of the covers from the West-East leg.
There were intermediate stops between Silver City/Hurley and the terminal cities, but the mail was not registered mail so there are no backstamps from those communities. A.M. 93 was flown by Frontier Airlines first on Douglas DC-3s. This is a postcard produced by Frontier, after it had dropped most of the small communities it had served in New Mexico and Arizona, and was no longer flying even to El Paso. As late as 1965, when I was on leave home before going to South Vietnam, I flew on Frontier DC-3s between Silver City and Tucson.
Thanks for all of the information. Curious why two of you collect C 11 specifically, except for the fact that it is a beautiful stamp . Always liked it as well as C 23.
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re: First Flight Covers
US First Flights are listed in the American Airmail Society (AAMS) catalogues. It is a multi-volume set of catalogues that also includes crash covers (Interrupted Mail), Airport dedications, Lindberghania etc. New volumes can be purchased from the AAMS, older sets are frequently available on eBay.
Roy
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The fact that the C11 is a beautiful stamp is the thing that led me to collect them. Fell in love with that stamp as a kid and I remember the first one I bought. Got it from H.E. Harris and could not wait for it to arrive in the mail. Saved my allowance to buy it. When I started to broaden my knowledge and interests, C11 on covers was a natural. Now, when ever I come home from a show or browse, I get that look from my wife and she asks, "You bought some more, didn't you?"
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