X3911D

Advances in Aviation

Republic P-47 Thunderbolt

Subscriber-Only Edition

Note: Collins cover # X3911 - Alpha code arbitary for cover identification

Collins Cover Announcement 

American Aviation

Set of Eleven

Dynamic individually hand painted cachets featuring innovative advances in American aviation technology make this superb Collins set of First Day Covers something very special. The ten new aircraft stamps are great renditions of U.S. planes that made history in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1050s. The marvelous "entire" cachets that fill the full envelope in realistic, watercolored aircraft illustrations are, in my opinion, destined to be considered the best of any produced for this issue. You will not want to miss out on acquiring this set, so please respond quickly as I expect an immediate sell-out on this one.

The original artwork combines fine-line drawings of the various planes put in high-speed action renditions and very large and bold text that is just the right "mix" to create exciting aviation cachets. The careful and expressive hand painting of each and every cachet produces a set of covers that will forever be an important part of our hobby. Each month you will eagerly await the new shipment with much anticipation as the set progresses toward completion. The set consists of Boeing's B29 Super Fortress; Lockheed's Shooting Star; the Consolidated Catalina Flying Boat; Boeing's 247, Northrop's Flying Wing, the Consolidated B-24 Liberator; Republic's Thunderbolt; Grumman's Hellcat; Beechcraft's Bonanza; and the Ercoup 415. What an amazing group of aircraft!

The above ten covers are true gems that are a superb collection, but for the Collins collector, I decided to add an eleventh "bonus" First Day Cover, and it is a dandy. I took the entire strip from the top of a full pane and affixed it across the top of a cover. This strip shows a Boeing Stratofortress from 1952 and a Hughes H-1 Racer from 1937. Below the strip, I placed a random stamp from the set of ten stamps. I then had the First Day of Issue bullseye postmark applied so that it ties BOTH the long strip and the stamp to the cover. What a great treasure this will become because of the naturally occurring "random stamp" limited editions. Unfortunately, I cannot accept orders for extras of this bonus cover because that would cause me to have incomplete sets.

From a personal viewpoint, this issue will always have a nice personal connection to the Collins family cachetmakers. The stamps were issued during the 50th Annual Convention of the American First Day Cover Society. Joining me for the three-day event were daughter Christina and grandson Scott. It was a wonderful philatelic event that we shared together, and I was determined to make this aviation set extra special so that it would forever be a meaningful cachetmaking reminder of a memorable occasion.

These sets WILL sell out quickly. Because of the limited number of sets produced, I'm not accepting multiple orders on this initial offering. There is a box on the order form to check off if you want to be considered for an extra set should any be left for sale. I would fill those on a first-received, first-served basis. As my long term collectors know, it takes me about six to eight weeks between sending out a new set order form and shipping the first cover. After that, a new cover will be shipped promptly once a month.

In conclusion, let me state in clear and simple terms that this is a highly anticipated set of Collins cachets, and you can expect I'll have an immediate favorable response. The stamps themselves, the superb hand painted cachets, the limited numbers produced, and the highly desirable and predictably valuable "bonus" cover all combine to make this set one of great collector appeal. Since the set will be invoiced and shipped at one cover per month, it will fit into virtually every hobby budget. Orders will be accepted on a first-come/first-served basis. I'm pleased to offer the Collins American Advances in Aviation set of eleven.