Description:

Aviation - Aviation Hall of Fame members including Rickenbacker and Doolittle sign Wright Brothers FDC

Wright Brothers First Day Cover envelope signed by nine members of the Aviation Hall of Fame, including (in alphabetical order and as signed): Alex. P. De Severesky, General J.H. Doolittle, Donald Douglas, General Ira Eaker, Grover Loening, John A. Macready, Captain Eddie Rickenbacker, Igor Sikorsky, and General Carl Spaatz, in blue and black ball point and fiber-tip pen on envelope front. Three of the signees (Eaker, Rickenbacker, and Spaatz) inscribe additional information under their signatures, such as their military ranking, or a date. 6.5" x 3.625" envelope is cream and features L.W. Steahle designed red and blue stamped graphic at left "Commemorating the Return of the Wright Brothers Airplane from England to the United States". The envelope is sealed with a 6 cent Wilbur and Orville Wright Air Mail stamp postmarked from Kittyhawk, NC on December 17, 1949 at upper right. In very fine condition, with some light toning verso. Comes with a copy of the March 28, 1974 auction invoice from Charles Hamilton Galleries, Inc. (NY, NY) listing lot as number 100.


Our Aviation Hall of Fame signees can be divided into two groups, those who served in the United States military, and those who were inventors, pilots, or manufacturers.

Carl Spaatz (1891-1974) served as a pilot during World War I, but most famously commanded the Strategic Air Forces in Europe in 1944. After the end of the war, Spaatz became chief of staff of the U.S. Air Force. James Doolittle (1896-1993) saw similar wartime military service, conducting the "Doolittle Raid", or a series of blistering retaliatory strikes on Japanese targets, following the attack on Pearl Harbor. Ira Eaker (1896-1987) led Allied Air Forces in England and the Mediterranean during World War II. Edward Rickenbacker (1900-1973) was a World War I army flying ace. With over 300 recorded combat hours and 26 enemy aircraft destroyed, Rickenbacker was an army record holder until World War II.



Igor Sikorsky (1889-1972) was already a well-established aircraft engineer when he emigrated from Russia to the United States in 1919. He founded the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation in 1923 and revolutionized the design of helicopters and fixed-wing airplanes. Alexander P. de Seversky (1894-1974) had a remarkably similar story, escaping the Bolsheviks in 1918 to later establish an airplane parts manufacturing empire in the United States. Donald Douglas (1892-1981) aimed to enable coast-to-coast non-stop airplane travel with the design of his Douglas Cloudster, a two-seat biplane. Although this project was ultimately unsuccessful, Douglas later operated a hugely profitable aircraft company. Grover Loening (1888-1976) worked for the Wright Brothers before starting his own aircraft concern in the late 1910s. John A. Macready (1887-1979) was a test pilot who received the MacKay Trophy for his record setting experiments in endurance, altitude, and transcontinental flights.

A remarkable document cataloging 20 th century achievements in aviation!

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June 14, 2017 10:30 AM EDT
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