Worldwide Stamps and Postal History

1933 (July 15) Darius-Girenas overprinted issue by the Darius-Girenas Transatlantic Flight Committee with the aid of the Consul General of Lithuania, who received the necessary authorization from the government of Lithuania for the overprinting of its stamps. The purpose of the issue was to aid in financing this transatlantic flight. These overprinted stamps, affixed to mail being flown on this flight to Kaunas, had the proper U.S. franking cancelled at Brooklyn Post Office July 15, with special cachet "Lituanica." The plane crashed in Soldin Germany. On arrival of the mail in Kaunas, a rectangular cachet was added "Conquering the Atlantic, they perished for the glory of Lithuania." The complete set of five, three on registered mail addressed to Nicolas Sanabria (of the Sanabria Air Post Catalogue), each used in combination with U.S. 5c Beacon (Scott's No.C11), with additional 1.20L Lithuanian franking on back to pay for the return postage to New York; another to A.J.Mazeika (secretary of the Transatlantic Flight Committee), with 3c U.S. on front, additional 60c Lithuanian stamp missing from back, slight creases, signed Bloch; last one to Arthur Lesser in New York, the overprinted stamp uncancelled (but just tied by the "Nugaleje Atlanta" handstamp), 60c Lithuanian stamp on back, cover with both pilots' signatures, some water logging at bottom, otherwise fine-v.f. A very rare set of covers franked with the overprinted Darius-Girenas adhesives, certainly one of the highlights of Lithuanian Aero philately, ex-Matuzas -