NAT airmail planes of the 20s and 30s

hawkeye2an · Apr 8, 2025

I am researching the planes that were used for the Airmail Routes that flew through my hometown of St Joseph, MO back in the 20s and 30s. They were The Curtiss Carrier Pigeon, Douglas M-2, Travel Air 5000, Travel Air 6000 and Ford Tri-motor. Any information you have would be helpful. MOST interested in any photos or other images you might have.

mjfur · Apr 8, 2025

https://catalog.archives.gov/search?page=1&q=air%20mail

SaparotRob · Apr 8, 2025

Amazing.

hawkeye2an · Apr 8, 2025

mjfur said:
https://catalog.archives.gov/search?page=1&q=air%20mail

Awesome stuff, now I will spend about a week exploring this

ThomasP · Apr 9, 2025

Don't forget the DH-4B which was a modified US built DH-4 for US Government use (aka Model 16 as produced/modified at Boeing). I am not sure if it was the first official US Post Office airplane used for Airmail service, but it was one of the earliest. They started operating in 1919, and eventually flew the cross-country routes - including through St. Joseph.

See "DH-4 Mail-plane" for a recent restoration project of a DH-4.

Sabrejet · Apr 9, 2025

Not much help I know, but by a weird coincidence, the day of your request we were out walking and had a nice fly-by from a Travel Air 4000 (ex-Pacific Air Transport Air Mail). It's a big machine.

hawkeye2an · Apr 9, 2025

ThomasP said:
Don't forget the DH-4B which was a modified US built DH-4 for US Government use (aka Model 16 as produced/modified at Boeing). I am not sure if it was the first official US Post Office airplane used for Airmail service, but it was one of the earliest. They started operating in 1919, and eventually flew the cross-country routes - including through St. Joseph.

See "DH-4 Mail-plane" for a recent restoration project of a DH-4.

View attachment 826462T

ThomasP said:
Don't forget the DH-4B which was a modified US built DH-4 for US Government use (aka Model 16 as produced/modified at Boeing). I am not sure if it was the first official US Post Office airplane used for Airmail service, but it was one of the earliest. They started operating in 1919, and eventually flew the cross-country routes - including through St. Joseph.

See "DH-4 Mail-plane" for a recent restoration project of a DH-4.

View attachment 826462

Thanks, intentionally left off because there are quite a few photos and newsreels of these as they were the first. There were quite a few pursuit plane images as well from when the Army had the job, mainly interested in the contract mail planes.

ThomasP · Apr 10, 2025

re

hawkeye2an said:
mainly interested in the contract mail planes.

So only aircraft from 1926 and later, and only the contractor owned aircraft, not the US Post Office government owned aircraft?

hawkeye2an · Apr 10, 2025

ThomasP said:
re

So only aircraft from 1926 and later, and only the contractor owned aircraft, not the US Post Office government owned aircraft?

Yes, most interested in the NAT airplanes as they came through St Joseph, MO on the Chicago-Dallas route and we had a repair depot here.

NAT airmail planes of the 20s and 30s

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