Posted : June 18, 1940 at Shanghai

Probable Route : CNAC from Shanghai to Hong Kong; Pan Am FAM 14 CHINA Clipper to Midway Island; Mail offloaded and transferred to the CALIFORNIA Clipper, which departed Midway on July 4 to Honolulu (July 4) and San Francisco July 5. USA domestic airlines to New York. FAM 18 Atlantic Clipper to Bermuda.

Notes : The July 4 Honolulu transit mark, confirms that this cover was carried on a combination of 2 different Clippers due to bad weather delays.

Rate : $4.75 - $.50 Registration Fee + $4.25 Air Rate.

Posted : Feb 14, 1941 at Shanghai

Route : CNAC from Shanghai to Hong Kong; Pan Am FAM 14 to San Francisco; USA domestic airlines to New York; FAM 18 Atlantic Clipper to Lisbon; probably by rail to Marseille.

Notes : Uncommon use of uprated Postal Stationary Card for expensive two-ocean trans-pacific air service. Air Transit 3 and Censor 14 applied at Hong Kong. Marseille arrival marking dated March 20 on reverse.

Rate : $5.80 - $.15 postcard + $5.65 Air Surcharge.

Posted : July 30, 1941 at Shanghai

Route : Surface from Shanghai to Hong Kong; Pan Am FAM 14 China Clipper departed Hong Kong Aug 8, arrived Honolulu Aug 23, and San Francisco Aug 26; USA and Canada domestic airlines to destination; backstamped Honolulu Aug 23, San Francisco Aug 26, Seattle Aug 27, Vancouver and Montreal.

Notes : Heavy weight cover addressed to the International Labour Office, which was located in Canada for a few years in the 1940s. This qualifies as a United Nations Forerunner cover. The censor tapes are Canadian. The franking includes a $20.00 Dr. SYS stamp, the highest face value stamp issued by China during this period.

Rate : $41.65 - $.50 base rate for the first 20gr + $.30 base rate x2 for the next 40gr + $4.45 Air Surcharge x9 = exactly $41.65 = 9 times the airmail rate.

Posted : August 28, 1941 at Shanghai

Route : CNAC or surface to Hong Kong; FAM 14 to San Francisco; USA domestic airlines to Miami. FAM 6-10 to Rio De Janeiro.

Notes : Censored in Hong Kong, endorsed USA By Clipper. Arrival marking dated Sep 26, 1941 on reverse.

Rate : $7.00

Posted : Oct 21, 1941 at Shanghai

Route : Surface from Shanghai to Hong Kong; FAM 14 from Hong Kong to San Francisco; US domestic airlines to New York; FAM 18 to Lisbon; DLH from Lisbon to Frankfurt or Koln, where the cover was censored by the Germans; European transport (probably rail) to Belgium.

Notes : Two-ocean airmail cover from China to German occupied Belgium, an uncommon destination for Pacific Clipper airmail. Air Transit 6 was applied at Hong Kong; Censored in Hong Kong and Germany.

Rate : $5.90 - .50 base rate + 5.40 air surcharge.

Posted : Nov 21, 1941 at Shanghai

Route : Surface from Shanghai to Hong Kong; Hong Kong II Clipper from Hong Kong to Manila; FAM 14 from Manila to San Francisco; US domestic airlines to New York; FAM 18 to Bermuda; Censored in Bermuda and Detained; transported to England, and HELD there until the end of World War II; Marked RELEASED by the British, and sent on to Denmark in 1946. Back stamped Manila Nov 27, Honolulu Dec 4, and New York Dec 7, all in 1941. Copenhagen Feb 21, 1946.

Notes : This registered airmail cover from China to Denmark, was flown on Pan American Airways two-ocean all airmail route to Europe, and was carried on the last pre-war flight of the CHINA Clipper. The cover has a Dec 4, 1941 transit marking from Honolulu, confirming that it was on CHINA Clipper's last flight, which arrived in Honolulu on Dec 4, and San Francisco Dec 6. From San Francisco, the cover was flown by US domestic airlines to New York, arriving there on Dec 7. From New York, it was then put on Pan Am's Atlantic Clipper service to be flown to Lisbon, Portugal. However, in Bermuda, the cover was censored by Examiner 4678, condemned and detained. Note the rusty paper clip impression on the back of the cover near the top center edge. This is typical of Condemned / Detained Mail which had Form 189 - an orange card, attached to the envelope with a paper clip. The form explained why the item was detained. Mail that was condemned and detained in Bermuda was sent to England, where it was held until the end of the war. Much of the mail was then 'Released' by the British Postal Authorities in 1946. This cover was hand stamped RELEASED with 3 wavy lines in black ink - (Flynn type H14B), on the front, and sent on to its original destination - Denmark. There is an oval Copenhagen, Denmark arrival marking dated February 21, 1946 on the back of the cover. The total transit time for this cover was 4 years and 3 months. It is interesting to note that the CHINA Clipper, used during World War II by Pan Am, was actually destroyed in a crash on January 8, 1945, near Port-of-Spain, Trinidad & Tobago. This cover, flown on CHINA Clipper's last trans-pacific pre-war flight, was delivered 1 year,1 month, and 13 days after the CHINA Clipper was destroyed in a crash. Certainly this has to be one of the more notable "Last Flight" Clipper covers in existence.

Rate : $12.80 - 1.00 base rate + 1.00 Registration Fee + 5.40 x2 air surcharge.