From: "Dimitri Debruyne"

Subject: German wartime international airmail rate

Hi Bob

Surface postage rate was 0.25 Rm to all foreign countries (for the first
20gr, each additional 20gr was 0.15Rm).
Registration was 0.30 Rm.
Special delivery was 0.50 Rm.

Airmail surcharge to Argentina (via LATI) was 1.50Rm each 5gr
Airmail surcharge to Argentina (via PANAM) was 0.55Rm if flown from New York
only (by sea from germany) or 0.80Rm if flown all the way (each 5gr)

So it looks like your cover was flown via LATI (0.25 + 1.50) to avoid
censorship by the allies. If you have postmark dates on that cover I can
have a look with what plane the letter was flown ...

Thanks for the information, Dimitri. Can you tell me what your source was?
Perhaps there's a book that I need in my library....

The cover was mailed on May 16, 1940, and was backstamped, apparently in
Argentina, on May 29. I have uploaded images of the cancellations to my web
site:

Krefeld cancel: http://www.ingraham.ca/bob/krefeldcancelfront.jpg
Argentina (?) backstamp : http://www.ingraham.ca/bob/krefeldbackstamp.jpg

(I am not sure if that backstamp is Argentinian. What do you think?)

Would I be wrong to guess the plane was the Savoia-Marchetti S.M.83? Linee
Aeree Transcontinentali Italiane - LATI* was flying that aircraft in 1939,
according to the web site at
http://airlines.afriqonline.com/aircraft/bydecade/1930.htm.

Would you have information on the route the aircraft/cover might have taken?

Bob



Airline:*
Best regards

Dimitri

"Tracy Barber" schreef in bericht
...
On Wed, 02 Jul 2003 04:06:43 GMT, Bob Ingraham
wrote:

Can anyone please tell me what the 1940 rate would be for an airmail
letter,
weighing 3.5 grams, mailed from Germany to Argentina? A cover I have is
franked with one 25m commemorative stamp (Scott #497) and two Hindenburg
definitives of 100m and 50m.

Bob - do you mean 100 pf and 50 pf? Hindenburg, afaik, was not on a
"Mark" stamp.

(Since the definitives are on cover, I can't be sure whether they are the
1933 issue or the 1933-36 issue, which was watermarked with a swastika.
Not
that this has anything to do with my question, although it would be
interesting to know. The cover was mailed by a Jew from Krefeld in 1940.)

Interesting, at that point in history...

Tracy Barber