Posted : June 20, 1941 at Elkton, MD

Probable Route : USA domestic airlines to San Francisco; FAM 14 Philippine Clipper departed San Francisco June 24, arriving at Hong Kong July 6; from Hong Kong probably by ship to Japan; upon arrival there, the cover was marked RETOUR AL'ENVOYEUR, and sent back to the USA, probably by ship. Backstamped Elkton June 20, San Francisco June 22, and Chicago Oct 24.

Notes : The $.90 franking included the fee for Return Receipt Requested. When the cover was unable to be delivered, it was sent back to the USA. There was a Japanese Form attached to the front of the cover, but the form has been removed.

Rate : $.90 - $.70 trans pacific rate + Registration fee + Return Receipt fee.

Posted : Sep 5, 1941 at New York, NY

Route : USA domestic airlines to San Francisco; FAM 19 Pacific Clipper departed San Francisco Sep 6, arriving at Honolulu Sep 7, and then returned to San Francisco on Sep 8. The ANZAC Clipper had left San Francisco on Aug 31, but was delayed in Honolulu for 9 days until Sep 10. This cover was offloaded from the Pacific Clipper to the Anzac clipper, which departed Honolulu on Sep 10, and after crossing the International dateline, arrived in Noumea on Sep 12. Backstamped Noumea, Sep 13.

Notes : Uncommon commercial mail to New Caledonia, censored in New Caledonia.

Rate : $.40 trans-pacific rate paid by 4 Prexies.

Posted : Sep 10, 1941 at Boston, MA

Route : USA domestic airlines to San Francisco; FAM 14 Pacific Clipper departed San Francisco Sep 20, arriving at Singapore Oct 4; BOAC Horseshoe route from Singapore to Cairo; probably by surface ( ship and rail) to Istanbul. Backstamped Istanbul.

Notes : The franking is only $.30, which was the Atlantic Clipper airmail rate. However, because of the Singapore censor tape and A 14 in small circles, we know the cover went by the trans-pacific route through Singapore. It was not marked Postage Due. I do not know why the cover was sent via Pacific instead of the Atlantic. A very interesting item.

Rate : $.30 - Atlantic Clipper rate used for Pacific Clipper service

Posted : Oct 11, 1941 on board the Submarine USS Porpoise

Route : USS Porpoise to the USS Otis by surface transport; USS Otis to Philippines Post Office by surface; FAM 14 from Manila to San Francisco; US domestic airlines to Idaho.

Notes : Uncommon Pacific Clipper mail originating on board a US Submarine in the Asiatic Fleet. The Porpoise had no Post Office, and so the cover was transferred to the USS Otis, which was a submarine tender ship in the Asiatic fleet.

Rate : $.50 - Pacific Clipper rate from the Philippine Islands to the USA

Posted : Oct 15, 1941 at Midway Island

Route : The FAM 14 American Clipper departed San Francisco on Oct 10, 1941, arriving at Singapore Oct 16; It left Singapore for the return trip to the USA on Oct 17, and after a one week delay in Manila, continued it's journey back to the US, arriving on Midway Island on Oct 31, and San Francisco on Nov 4.

Notes : Colorful envelope used on Midway Island by a Pfc. in the Marines Sixth Defense Battalion.

Rate : $.30 - Pacific Clipper rate from Midway to the USA

Posted : Nov 1941 at Wake Island

Route : FAM 14 California Clipper from Wake Island to Hawaii, arriving there Nov 5....departed Hawaii on Nov 6, arriving San Francisco on Nov 7; USA domestic transport to Los Angeles.

Notes : There was no Post Office on Wake Island. Mail was carried by the Clippers to Hawaii, where it was postmarked, and sent on to the correct destination. This cover was posted on Wake Island, and has a map of Wake in the cachet. It was carried by the California Clipper to Honolulu, and postmarked Nov 5.

Rate : $.35 - Pacific Clipper rate from Wake Island to the USA

Posted : Nov 14, 1941 at New York

Route : US domestic airlines to San Francisco; FAM 14 China Clipper departed San Francisco on Nov 19, arriving at Manila Nov 28; Hong Kong II shuttle Flight from Manila to Hong Kong on Nov 29.

Notes : Cover carried on the last outbound flight of the CHINA Clipper.

Rate : $.70 - 1oz Pacific Clipper rate to Hong Kong.

Posted : Nov 20, 1941 at Burlington, Iowa

Route : US domestic airlines to San Francisco; PAA Shuttle Service Flight flown by PACIFIC Clipper departed San Francisco Nov 22 arriving Honolulu Nov 23; cover offloaded and put on board China Clipper which had departed San Francisco on Nov 19, but was delayed in Honolulu until Nov 24; China Clipper departed Honolulu Nov 24, arriving at Singapore on Nov 28; BOAC Horseshoe route to Calcutta, India; India domestic transport to Lucknow; back stamped Lucknow, India Dec 8, 1941.

Notes : At first I was perplexed by the dates on this cover. The cover is postmarked Nov 20, 1941 at Burlington, Iowa, one day after CHINA Clipper had already departed San Francisco. There was no other transpacific flight until the PACIFIC Clipper left San Francisco on Dec 1, and arrived in Auckland on Dec 7. This cover is back stamped Lucknow, India on Dec 8. There is no way the cover could make the journey from Auckland, NZ to India in one day. And so the cover could not have been on the Pacific Clipper Dec 1 flight. Then I noted that the CHINA Clipper was delayed in Honolulu until Nov 24. I then noted that a Pan Am Shuttle Service flight went from San Francisco to Honolulu on Nov 22-23. To be in India on Dec 8, this cover was carried on the shuttle flight which arrived in Honolulu on Nov 23, and was then transferred to CHINA Clipper and flown to Singapore. A truly Rare cover, flown on a Shuttle Service flight and then flown on the last outbound flight of CHINA Clipper.

Rate : $.70 - 1oz Pacific Clipper rate to India.

Posted : Dec 2, 1941 at Honolulu,HI

Route : Hawaii to San Francisco by Pan Am's Shuttle Service AMERICAN Clipper; USA domestic airlines to New York; FAM 18 Atlantic Clipper to Lisbon, Portugal; European transport to Sweden.

Notes : In August of 1941, Pan Am instituted a shuttle service for passengers, mail, and freight between Hawaii and the California mainland. The shuttle flights were in addition to the regular FAM 14 and FAM 19 flights. They were originally intended to occur 3 times weekly, but the actual flights occurred less than that and the schedule was somewhat erratic. On Dec 4, the AMERICAN Clipper left Honolulu for the mainland, on what would be the last pre-war flight of the Shuttle Service. This two-ocean airmail cover is postmarked Dec 2 at Honolulu, and would have been carried on the Last Pre-War Flight of the AMERICAN Clipper, arriving in San Francisco on Dec 5.

Rate : $.50 two-ocean rate - $.20 Pacific Clipper rate to the USA + $.30 Atlantic Clippper rate to Europe.

Posted : Dec 3, 1941 at San Francisco

Possible Route : FAM 14 ANZAC clipper to Hawaii; offloaded at Hilo; forwarded from Hawaii, possibly by military transport to the USS Holland in the Asiatic Fleet.

Notes : The Philippine Clipper left San Francisco on Dec 3. All mail carried on that flight was offloaded at Wake Island on Dec 7, to lighten the load for the return trip to Hawaii carrying escaping Pan Am personnel from Wake. The mail bags were left on Wake Island, presumably either destroyed or captured by the Japanese. The only other clipper to leave San Francisco after December 3, 1941, was the ANZAC, which departed on Dec 6,1941 and arrived in Hawaii during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The ANZAC was diverted to a River landing at Hilo, where all mail was quickly offloaded, and the Clipper returned to San Francisco. These were the last 2 Clippers to leave San Francisco. However, note the absence of any RELEASED BY I.C.B. markings from Hawaii. After observing many covers from this period, I believe that mail addressed to US Military personnel was not examined by the ICB in Hawaii, which would explain the absence of those markings. Still, this item poses some questions. There are no Return To Sender markings or censor markings on the cover. The USS Holland was based in the Philippines at this time. Did the cover arrive at it's destination in the Asiatic Fleet?

Rate : $.50 trans-pacific rate