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Postcard Flown & Signed By
James Doolittle during the "George Washington Bicentennial
Airplane Flight" |
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After inventing instrument flying in 1929, and being the first to perform an
'outside loop' in 1927, and convincing the Shell Oil Company to produce the
first quantities of 100 octane aviation gasoline, James Harold "Jimmy" Doolittle
could have retired a legend in the field of aviation. But with passion for
flight, he wanted everyone to see the wonders of the Golden Age of Aviation, and
share it publicily, via as many ways as possible.
In an letter included in most of the covers flown on the
flight, Doolittle wrote the following:
"One hundred and fifty-seven years ago this week, the
Continental Congress inaugurated the postal service...[which] later became the
Post Office Department of the United States. Benjamin Franklin became the first
director. Mail, at that time, was carried by post riders and stage coaches. No
one in the early days of the service had a more appreciative understanding of
the advantages of a postal service than George Washington. No one did more to
give it a firm foundation. In this Bicentennial Year of George Washington's
birth it therefore seems appropriate that a demonstration be made of the advance
of transportation facilities since those early days. I am making a flight over
as many of the routes traveled by George Washington as is possible in a single
day from dawn to dusk. I am informed that the average speed made by George
Washington may be considered to be about twenty miles a day. The advance since
then can best be indicated by the fact that it is hoped to cover in each hour
the distance it took Washington nine days to travel. So that you will have a
record of this flight, I am dropping several of these letters as I pass over
certain cities.'"
Afterwards, Jimmy Doolittle and the "Shellightning" set
several long distance records, all the while promoting Shell Oil products.
Shell wouldn't sell the airplane, but Paul Mantz later purchased it and
flew it in the 1938 and 1939 Bendix races. Still later, SwissAir obtained
the plane, had it restored in the colors of one of their original
"Red Dogs," donating it to the Swiss Museum of Transport in
Lucerne, Switzerland. Doolittle himself... well, after the start of World
War II, he decided to fly to Japan, and rest is history.
The postcard was postmarked in Washington DC on July 25, 1932
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Cover Flown Aboard A
Helicopter Flight From the Coast Guard Ice Breaker "Polar
Sea", WAGB-11 |
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Every year since 1955, the United States has maintained a naval
presence in the world's two polar regions.
Rear Admiral Theodore Wojnar served as the Thirteen District Commander
from April 1986 to July 1988.
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