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 regular airmail service began in May 1918 by Army pilots, with the Post Office Department taking over later that year and expanding it to transcontinental delivery by 1924.
- The U.S. Postal Service is commemorating the centennial of airmail service by issuing two new "United States Air Mail Forever" stamps.
- The first stamp's dedication ceremony is on May 1, 2018, at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum, and both stamps feature the Curtiss JN-4H (Jenny) biplane, reminiscent of the original 1918 airmail stamps.
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