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Show Pigeons Were World's First Air Mail Pilots Pigeons carried messages in ancient an-cient times, beginning in the days of Cyrus, the Persian king (about 5f0 B. C). But it is not generally known that they pioneered the world's first regular air mail services. serv-ices. It began in November, 1897, when the Great Barrier Pigeongram Pigeon-gram Service established a regular regu-lar air mail route between Auckland, Auck-land, New Zealand, and Great Barrier Island, 65 miles to the north-west across a tempestuous strait. A year later the New Zealand Zea-land Government authorized the issue of special postage stamps for use on this pigeon mail. In September, 1899, the service was extended to Marotiri and Hen and Chicken Islands. A rival service, serv-ice, known as the Great Barrier Pigeongram Agency, began operations opera-tions in the latter year. Both companies com-panies continued to carry mail by pigeon post over these routes until the opening of the New Zealand cable in 1908. Letters flown on this pioneer air service were written on sheets of tissue-thin paper, folded in such a manner that they could be sealed with the postage stamp itself. |
