Hello, welcome to the weekend. I hope you enjoy seeing this stamp. Do you combined philately with another interest?
Anyone that knows me will know I do. Aviation and Philately. So I thought I would share this with you. Perhaps you will find it interesting.
This is from a set of 4 issued in 1984 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first airmail service between Australia and Papua New Guinea.
This is an interesting aircraft. Yes, a Catalina but what was called a Consolidated Catalina because it was built by the Consolidated Aircraft Corporation in San Diego, California during 1937.
It was purchased by the American Museum of Natural History in New York, NY for use by naturalist Dr. Richard Archbold. It was registered in the United States as NC 777 and nicknamed “GUBA” If you look carefully you might see the name on the aircraft.
GUBA was the New Guinea Hiri Moutu word for a tropical storm and the plane was given this name in honour of another aircraft that sank in the Guba storm.
Some trivia about this plane. It made the first transcontinental flight by a flying boat, and, it was the plane used by the Russians in 1937 but flown by Sir Hubert Wilkins the famous Australian polar explorer, ornithologist to search for the 6 Russian crew of a flight which disappeared on a flight across the North Pole.
Enjoy your stamps and whatever other interests you have. have a great weekend ……….Michael.