Our new website on Indian Airmails launched

Just about two years after I set-up my website on Air-India Collectibles (www.airindiacollector.com), I have now launched my next website on Indian Airmails (www.indianairmails.com). This will allow me to post and share information on the subject, and images of airmail covers etc. I had started by posting a section on aerophilately on my previous web-site which I have now moved to the newer one. The two sites have been cross linked extensively so that some sections like the blog, resources page and useful links page are common.

There is a more serious objective I had in mind as well. I have found very high quality documentation around Indian airmails related to the pre-World War II era (1911-1939). There are several sources for this and I have listed many of them on my resources page. During the World War II era (1939-1945), there is also a lot of information, but also glaring gaps exist. There is relatively less, and one may argue, a disappointing level of information in what is also a very interesting period of post-World War II airmails history. I would break this up into two parts, pre-nationalisation (1945-1953) and post-nationalisation (1953 onward). During the pre-nationalisation period there were as many as a dozen different airlines that carried airmails, and the routes, postmarks, rates and other details are not easily available in a single place. The post-1953 are again has been sadly neglected by postal history and airmail collectors.

This website will over time attempt to fill this gap. One of the advantages of a website is that it allows you the freedom to keep adding (and correcting) information as you come across it. This is a feature I intend to exploit to the fullest measure. I have started by uploading information on the most fascinating Air-India, 8 June 1948 Bombay-London service, and also on the sister and predecessor airlines, Tata Sons (Aviation Division), Tata Airlines, Air India Ltd. I have also uploaded information on Indian Airlines which was formed after nationalisation in 1953. There is a section on Indian Zeppelin mails. This is not a widely collected field, but one that I personally enjoy tremendously. It includes mail flown on a Zeppelin or catapult mail service that has an Indian postage stamp, or is addressed to an Indian destination.

I hope you will enjoy visiting the sites as much as I have enjoyed building them.