In May 1938, Carpenter Airlines began a regular air mail service between Sydney and Papua New Guinea. Mail was accepted from New Zealand for the inaugural flight and addressed to New Zealand on the return flight.
On 30 May, a DH 86 of Carpenter Airlines flew from Sydney to Townsville and on 31 May to Port Moresby in Papua followed by Salamua in New Guinea. On 1 June, the flight continued to Rabaul in New Guinea. The rate was 4d per ½oz.
The cover was flown from Rabaul on the return journey starting on Friday 3 June. It arrived in Sydney on 5 June where it was backstamped. It has stamps to the value of 1/-, sufficient for 1½oz.
Although there was a large mail to and from Australia, the number of acceptances to and from New Zealand was quite small.
There had been an experimental flight from
New Zealand to New Guinea
via Australia in 1934 by Ulm and Allan.
This next cover was flown from Sydney to Rabaul in September 1938. It is postmarked in Gisborne and franked with 4d in New Zealand airmail stamps. There are two Rabaul transit marks on 15 September and it is franked with 6d in New Guinea stamps for the return flight.
Although this cover is obviously philatelic in nature, I am not aware
of any special reason for a mid September flight.
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All scans were made by the author.
Information on this page is taken from:
Airmails of New Zealand, volume 2 (1986) compiled by
Douglas A Walker, and
The New Zealand Airmail Catalogue, (2nd Edition, 1994)
by James Stapleton.
Both are published by the
Air Mail Society of New Zealand