The first delivery of mail from an airplane is often credited to Earl Ovington after he dropped a sack of letters and postcards from an airplane still 500 feet above the ground. That was in the fall of 1911. The U.S. Postal Service says a small group of Army pilots initiated the world’s first regularly scheduled airmail service in May 1918 between Washington, Philadelphia and New York.
USPS Celebrates 100th Anniversary of Airmail Service
Key Takeaways:
- The first airmail delivery is credited to Earl Ovington in 1911, with the world's first regularly scheduled airmail service initiated by U.S. Army pilots in May 1918.
- The U.S. Post Office Department took charge of airmail in August 1918, developing lighted airfields and beacons to enable transcontinental, day and night service by 1924.
- The U.S. Postal Service is commemorating the centennial of airmail service by dedicating two "United States Air Mail Forever" stamps in 2018, featuring a Curtiss JN-4H (Jenny) biplane.
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