CRASH MAIL: 1928 Calcutta to Rangoon, by Dutch Aeroplane illustrated post card; franked by ½a green, tied by Park Street Calcutta cds for 4 OCT 28, neighboured by Rangoon arrival d/s for the 16 OCT, bearing '3RD PLANE CRASHED AT CAWNPORE' boxed cachet, fine and scarce, one of only fifty six postcards flown. SG 202 (Image)

1928 cover to Rangoon bearing salmon-coloured label with 3p x 2 and ½a, Calcutta CDSs of 4 MAY. Two green cachets on the front, and red cachet reading PLANE CRASHED AT AKYAB,/ 16the MAY, 1928. French Consulate and Stephen H. Smith handstamps on reverse (Image)

AIRMAIL: 1929-33 quartet of Flight covers, we note; 1929 Joan Page Dum Dum flight, 1930 Jacobabad emergency flight due to floods, 1933 Prince Ali Khan cover and Electrical Power Inspection Flight from Comilla- Calcutta, only 17 one of only covers which were flown, fine condition and interesting group. (4) (Image)

Airmail. 1930 envelope from Calcutta to Karachi bearing a Christmas charity label on the front, tied by two-line cachet in green. Also bears (front and reverse) CALCUTTA-CAPE TOWN first flight cachet, pilot-signed; 16 flown. Very fine H.H. The Aga Khan had offered a £500 prize to the first Indian to fly solo to South Africa. A.M. Murad made the attempt in Gipsy Moth 'Sunita', but crashed at Shaibah in Iraq (Image)

Airmail. 1930 Imperial Airways 'City of Washington' crash mail cover, bearing 1929 Airmail 2a, 3a, 4a and 6a tied by Park Town CDSs of 17 Oct. Flown from Karachi and due to land at Croydon, but crashed at Neufchâtel killing two passengers and a crew member. Godmanstone arrival of 1st Nov on front. Envelope with a crease at left, otherwise fine All airmail from India to the UK from October 7th-20th would have been flown on this plane, but as there were no crash markings applied there was a low survival rate (Image)

AIRMAIL: 1930 'Pass For One To Royal Airship Base and Motor Car Pass Royal Airship Base' leaflets prepared for the arrival of the Airship R101, which was on its maiden overseas flight but crashed on the 5th October 1930 in France, killing 48 of the 54 people on board including Lord Thomson, the Air Minister. This lot also includes two Flight magazines. Scarce. Ex David Kirch (Image)

Airmail. 1931 Calcutta - Darwin flight cover bearing New Delhi ½a pair and 1a, Park Street CDSs of 3 APR. Illustrated cachet for England - Australia flight on front with additional purple cachet DETAINED TILL 5th APRIL/ ENGINE OVERHAULED. Australia 2d Kingsford Smith also on front, tied by Darwin arrival of 24 AP. 43 flown (Image)

Airmail. 1931 cover flown Calcutta - Akyab. ½a New Delhi with Park Street CDs of 10 AUG and 1a brown with Akyab CDS of 4 SEP, also on front a photo of the American aviatrix Mrs Day. The latter is tied by purple cachet ACROSS THE BAY OF BENGAL/ To Akyab/ By AMERICAN FLIERS, another cachet on reverse and signed Stephen Smith. 28 flown (Image)

Airmail. 1931 cover flown Calcutta - Rangoon with 1a brown, Park Street Calcutta CDS of 28 MAR, and 1a New Delhi with Rangoon 3 APR CDS. Cachets front and back, and signed by the American fliers John Pratt and Ross Hadley. 45 flown (Image)

Airmail. 1932 (13 Jan) cover with ½a green tied by Park Street Calcutta CDS, carried on 'The Flying Carpet' by Richard Halliburton and pilot Moy Stevens on a round-trip flight to the Himalayas. Signed by Halliburton on the front and Stephen Smith on the reverse. Heavy 'Park Street Dely.' CDS on reverse has caused an inconsequential split to the front of the envelope, not affecting labels or markings; 50 flown (Image)

Airmail. 1933 (5 Apr.) Houston Mount Everest Flight cover with Purnea special datestamp, tieing two 1a3p stamps, addressed to Balham. The envelope with some peripheral tears and some fairly minor toning, just affecting the adhesives. No. 18 on the India Post 2010 list of the 22 recorded (Image)

Airmail. 1933 Imperial Airways covers from Athens, illustrated envelopes with Greek frankings, appropriate cachets and backstamps, flown to Akyab, Allahabad, Calcutta, New Delhi and Rangoon (Image)

Airmail. 1933 Imperial Airways illustrated First Flight covers (8) with three originating in Iraq, three in Belgium, and one each from Germany and Holland. Various cachets, backstamps and destinations (Image)

AIRMAIL: 1935 two covers from India franked by various issues from 1929 Air Mail and 1935 Silver Jubilee addressed to Kent, England and Barbados, tied by Solgan postmark for 11 JY 35, flown on IW355 which was delayed at Bahrain on the 15-16th July due to bad weather, peripheral wear and faults nonetheless scarce the cover addressed to Barbados is believed to be unique! SG 221-246 (Image)

Airmail. 1936 Paris to Saigon Air Race cover carried by Arnoux, Jappy and Micheletti. Bears 50ct Ceres with Le Bourget CDS of 25.10, and India 3p with Karachi Air CDS of 26 OCT. Race cachet on the front and in addition, 'Voyage interrompu le 26-1-1936 à Karachi'. The aircraft crashed and they retired from the race; signed Arnoux and Jappy (Image)

Airmail. 1936 Scipio crash covers (some condition issues, as to be expected, from immersion in Mirabella Bay, Crete). Four different black cachets; bold DAMAGED BY/ SEA WATER, DAMAGED-BY-/ SEA WATER, DAMAGED/ BY/ SEA WATER, and boxed DAMAGED BY IMMERSION/ IN SEA WATER I.S. (Image)

Airmail. 1936 Scipio crash cover (stamps washed off) from India to Holland with (scarce) two-line label in French (Image)

Airmail. 1937 cover carried on Mrs Bonney's solo Australia to South Africa flight in her monoplane "My Little Ship II", bearing Australian stamps (Brisbane CDSs of 8th April) with India 12a added at base (boxed New Delhi airmail slogan cancel). Large boxed violet cachet front and back, the reverse signed by Mrs Bonney (Image)

Airmail. 1937 Cygnus Crash covers (condition issues commensurate with immersion in sea water - the aircraft sank at Brindisi - stamps washed off all three), with three different boxed cachets (Nierinck 371205 a, b and c): violet DAMAGED BY SEA-WATER, black DAMAGED BY SEA/ WATER, and violet DAMAGED BY/ SEA WATER/ IN AIRPLANE/ ACCIDENT (Image)

Airmail. 1937 Cygnus Crash covers (two, condition issues commensurate with immersion in sea water - stamps washed off one), with two different boxed cachets: violet DAMAGED BY SEA-WATER, and violet DAMAGED BY/ SEA WATER/ IN AIRPLANE/ ACCIDENT. Some staining (Image)

AIRMAIL: 1941 First Flight illustrate cover, from Chungking to Calcutta, franked by 1932 AIR, 25c orange, $2 brown and 1938-41 $1 sepia and red-brown, with censor mark at right, reverse with Chungking dispatch mark and Indian slogan H/S, slight ageing otherwise fine and attractive item. This lot also includes an 1945 India commercial cover addressed to Chungking. (2) (Image)

Airmail. 1942 illustrated envelope (with large red 'V', 'Trump cards') with 9p green pair, DAHARAMTALA CDS of 29 OCT. Purple 'Carried on/ Reconnaissance Flight/ Over Enemy Occupied Territory/ By U.S.A.A.C.' cachet, signed by pilot Capt. A.C. McMillan. Park Street slogan arrival on reverse of 30 OCT. 32 flown (Image)

Airmail. 1945 military airletter form with despatch CDS of 14 AUG 45, violet Unit Censor F841 and red RECOVERED FROM/ SALVAGED AIRCRAFT, all on front. The flight crashed near Dahanu in Bombay Province on 19th August, killing the crew. Wrinkles, otherwise good (Image)

Airmail. 1950 envelope from Bombay Stock Exchange to London with 12a meter franking, peripheral tears and creasing. Backstamped with Bombay Stock Exchange CDS of 1 NOV 50, and bearing label 'Salvaged April 1951, from the Air Liner "Malabar-Princess", which crashed in the Alps, November 1950', tied by London F.S. CDS of 30 AP 51 Air India Flight 245 crashed near the summit of Mont Blanc on 3rd November 1950 on the Istanbul to Geneva leg of its journey. All 48 on board were killed. Some mail was recovered shortly after the crash. Further items were recovered in 1951, 1952 and a final tranche at the foot of a glacier in 1978 (Image)

Airmail. 1950 small, damaged O.I.G.S. cover to New York with Calcutta meter mark frankings with two sealing tapes, and mimeographed label reading 'BUREAU DE POSTES AEROPORT FAROUK le retard et l'etat de l'objet sont due a l'accident survenu a l'avion le 31-8-50'. Scorched and watersoaked TWA Flight 903 was en route from Bombay to New York. On the Cairo to Rome leg it crashed and burned out with the loss of all 55 passengers and crew, near the village of Ityai el Barud, north of Cairo (Image)