ITALY; 1931 Crociera Aerea Transatlantica Italia – Brasile, specially printed flight card with Port Guinea 10c, 20c, 30c pair plus two different special flight vignettes, all tied by «ESTACIO POSTAL DE BOLOMA -4. JAN 1931» cds cancels, backstamped «NATAL (R.G.N. Corr. Aereo - 4a SEC. - 6.I.31» on arrival, the vignettes with some tropical toned perfs, otherwise a Fine and scarce use; one of only a few items transported privately outside the official mails by pilot Calo Carducci (I-CALO) himself on his plane from Balamo to Natal; signed E Diena (Longhi 2261, EUR4,000) (Image 2) (Image)

CV. Starting Price 2,000

CUBA; Rocket Flight Cover; 1939 Oct 3, Havana – Exp.–Fumes, Excellent strike of «PRE-ENSAYO DEL PRIMER COHETE POSTAL AEREO / C-1 Oct 3 1939» cachet with the «3» inserted, franking a private blue label surcharged «C1 / 25 C» and tied by black «CAMPO EXPERIMENTA / HABANA, CUBA / OCTUBRE 3 1939» with the «3» being inserted in violet, backstamped «ADMON. DE CORREOS HABANA - CUBA 3 OCT 1939», Fine and scarce with only 21 covers flown and only a few known with the Havana arrival cancel (Hopferwieser (2016) = € 2’100 lot, E-Z 2C1a, unpriced) (Image 2) (Image)

CV. Starting Price 1,200

CUBA; Rocket Flight Cover; 1939 Oct 8, Havana – Exp.-Fumes, Nice strike of «PRE-ENSAYO DEL PRIMER COHETE POSTAL AEREO / C-1 Oct 8 1939» cachet with the «8» inserted, franking a private red label surcharged «C 1 25C / 8 OCT 1939 / 3R ENSAYO», tied by black "CAMPO EXPERIMENTA - HABANA, CUBA OCTUBRE 1939", label with some toned perfs, still Fine and scarce with just 16 covers flown (E-Z 3C1, Hopferwieser (2016) = € 2‘100) (Image)

CV. Starting Price 1,000

Astronaut Signatures Assortment, Includes Apollo 9 commemorative cover with original signatures of crew members McDivitt and Schweikert; Apollo 15 astronaut Jim Irwin - four signatures on mint sheet of US 1971 Space Achievement issue (Scott 1434-35); Apollo 16 signatures of crew members Charles Duke, Ken Mattingly and John Young; a Challenger flown space cover; Very Fine (Image 2) (Image 3) (Image 4) (Image)

CV. Starting Price 800

Apollo 11 “Insurance” Cover Signed by the Astronauts, Cacheted cover with bold signatures of Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins, cancelled by Kennedy Space Center, FL July 16 1969 launch date machine cancel, Very Fine and rare; signed A Bolaffi and with 2002 «Certificato finanziario di "Qualita Bolaffi"

As Buzz Aldrin once explained, «Since we were unable to obtain adequate life insurance due to the high risk nature of being an astronaut, we signed this group of covers and evenly distributed them to our families for safe keeping while we performed our mission. If an unfortunate event prevented our safe return, the covers would have provided a limited financial means of support to our families.» (Image 2) (Image)

CV. Starting Price 1,500

Apollo 12 Cover Flown to Moon and Back,
cacheted cover postmarked Houston TX Dec 10 1960 hand cancel after quarantine period, signed by crew members Alan Bean, Charles Conrad and Dick Gordon, on back side written notation «This envelope was flown to the moon on Apollo 15. Richard F. Gordon.", Very Fine and rare; 1984 E Diena certificate and 1984 sworn statement of Barbara F. Gordon
Apollo 12 Lunar Module Pilot Richard "Dick" Gordon prepared a set of 87 envelopes with the intention of carrying them with him on the mission but in the end they were left behind. These covers were later carried by Jim Irwin on the Apollo 15 mission, allowing them to be regarded as flown, though on a different mission
(Image 2) (Image)

CV. Starting Price 10,000

Apollo 13 Cover Flown to Moon and Back in Commander James Lovell»s personal preference kit, cancelled immediately upon landing by Ellington Air Force Base Apr 19 1970 duplex hand cancel with another strike on the back side, cacheted cover is signed by the original crew of James Lovell, Frad Haise and Ken Mattingly (shortly before the flight Mattingly was replaced by Jack Swigert but his signature was not added to the covers either before or after the mission), Very Fine, #13 of 50 flown, signed Alberto and Giulio Bolaffi and E Diena, accompanied by his certificate (Image 2) (Image)

CV. Starting Price 25,000

Apollo 15 Flown to Moon and Back, Cacheted cover with Kennedy Space Center Jul 26 1971 date of launch slogan machine cancel, stowed aboard the spacecraft in a sealed fireproof packet, carried to the lunar surface in LM "Falcon" and returned to Earth in CM "Endeavour"; immediately after splashdown on Aug 7 1971 the cover was postmarked at US Navy Postal Station on USS Okinawa and signed by the crew - James B Irwin, David R Scott and Alfred M Worden, Very Fine; #270 of 300 (100 were flown on behalf of stamp dealer Hermann Sieger); signed A Bolaffi and accompanied by sworn statement of the crew (Image 2) (Image)

CV. Starting Price 4,000

Apollo 17 “Insurance” Cover, Cacheted cover with Dec 7 1972 date of launch machine cancel, signed by all three of the crew members - Eugene Cernan, Ronald Evans and Harrison Schmitt, Very Fine and rare
Very few of the Apollo 17 «insurance» covers were prepared because of the prior Apollo 15 «scandal» and very few covers are known with signatures of all three astronauts as Schmitt was unmarried and had no children. (Image 2) (Image)

CV. Starting Price 2,000

1933 Balbo Squadron Flight Cover, Chicago to Shediac (Canada) Leg, US 10c pair, 50c, $1 Definitives (Scott 571, 642, 701) tied by Chicago Jul 18 1933 Century of Progress slogan machine cancel on envelope with AAMC president cc, backstamped Shediac Jul 25 33, black «ITALIAN AIR CRUISE / CHICAGO - ROMA» cachet, Fine, only 37 covers flown this leg; signed A Diena (Longhi 2941, EUR3,500; Sassone GP 54, EUR5,000) (Image 2) (Image)

CV. Starting Price 1,000

1933 Balbo Squadron Flight Cover, New York to Shediac (Canada) Leg, US 50c, $1 Definitives plus 20c Map (Scott 571, 701, C9) tied on registered airmail envelope by New York / Varick St Annex July 23 duplex cancel, backstamped Shediac Jul 25 33, nice strike of the purple «ITALIAN AIR CRUISE / NEW YORK - ROMA» flight cachet, Very Fine, only 44 covers flown (Longhi 2944, EUR3,000; Sassone GP 57, EUR4,750) (Image 2) (Image)

CV. Starting Price 1,000

1933 Balbo Squadron Flight Cover, New York to Shoal Harbor (Newfoundland) Leg, US 50c, $1 Definitives plus 20c Map (Scott 571, 701, C9) tied on airmail envelope by New York / Varick St Annex Jul 23 1933 duplex cancels, neat red ms. «By Italian Air Cruise New York-Newfoundland», backstamped Shoal Harbor Newf»d Jul 26 33, near-perfect strike of purple «ITALIAN AIR CRUISE / NEW YORK - ROMA» cachet, Fine and attractive, 99 covers flown; signed A Diena (Longhi 2945, EUR2,000; Sassone GP 57, EUR3,750) (Image 2) (Image)

CV. Starting Price 750