# C6 - 1923 24c Airmail carmine
1923 24¢ De Havilland Plane
City: Washington, DC
Quantity: 5,285,776
Printed By: Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Printing Method: Flat plate printing
Perforations: 11
Color: Carmine
Transcontinental Airmail
When US airmail service first began in 1918, it was a success, making more money than it spent. However, in the years that followed, it lost money because of increased costs due to a higher number of routes, greater distances traveled, and more mail that weighed down the planes.
Not wanting to charge more for airmail, the post office hoped the government would use tax money to help support the airmail system. However, President Warren G. Harding didn’t believe it was worth it. At the time, transcontinental airmail, a service that began in 1920, was only flown during the day. At night it was transferred to railcars, which carried it to a plane ready to take off at dawn. On its own, a train could cross the country in 108 hours, while this mixture of air and rail took 78 hours. But Harding didn’t believe that decreased time was good enough, arguing that rail mail was cheaper. He stated that he would veto any proposals from Congress to give money to airmail.
After extensive planning, the flights westward began at 6:00 a.m. on February 22. Two planes left Hazlehurst Field, Long Island, New York. At 4 a.m. Pacific time, two planes departed Marina Field, San Francisco, California. Along both routes, relay planes would be waiting at pre-determined locations. However, the flights would be plagued with issues. One pilot would lose his life and several of the flights were delayed or canceled due to a massive snowstorm. By 10:44 p.m., James “Jack” Knight was the only pilot still on course.
Click here for more airmail stamps, sets, and covers.
1923 24¢ De Havilland Plane
City: Washington, DC
Quantity: 5,285,776
Printed By: Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Printing Method: Flat plate printing
Perforations: 11
Color: Carmine
Transcontinental Airmail
When US airmail service first began in 1918, it was a success, making more money than it spent. However, in the years that followed, it lost money because of increased costs due to a higher number of routes, greater distances traveled, and more mail that weighed down the planes.
Not wanting to charge more for airmail, the post office hoped the government would use tax money to help support the airmail system. However, President Warren G. Harding didn’t believe it was worth it. At the time, transcontinental airmail, a service that began in 1920, was only flown during the day. At night it was transferred to railcars, which carried it to a plane ready to take off at dawn. On its own, a train could cross the country in 108 hours, while this mixture of air and rail took 78 hours. But Harding didn’t believe that decreased time was good enough, arguing that rail mail was cheaper. He stated that he would veto any proposals from Congress to give money to airmail.
After extensive planning, the flights westward began at 6:00 a.m. on February 22. Two planes left Hazlehurst Field, Long Island, New York. At 4 a.m. Pacific time, two planes departed Marina Field, San Francisco, California. Along both routes, relay planes would be waiting at pre-determined locations. However, the flights would be plagued with issues. One pilot would lose his life and several of the flights were delayed or canceled due to a massive snowstorm. By 10:44 p.m., James “Jack” Knight was the only pilot still on course.
Click here for more airmail stamps, sets, and covers.