Postal Meter panels
During the 1950s to 1990s, the postal service was the most commonly used means of document exchange. Most offices worldwide had installed postal franking machines to eliminate the need to affix postage stamps on their correspondence. These machines provided an added advantage of printing an advertising message panel on the side of the franking. Air-India used this space very creatively.
Some examples of Postal Meter Advertising Panels are shown on this page.
Some examples of Postal Meter Advertising Panels are shown on this page.
Bombay. 5 May 1955
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Bombay. 5 May 1955
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Bombay. 7 May 1955
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Dusseldorf. 24 February 1958
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London. 28 May 1959
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Notice the lovely cartoon with our Maharajah shaking hands with a kangaroo. The first Air-India service to Sydney was inaugurated on 5 October 1956.
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Here the Maharajah welcome you to FLY WITH ME.
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Cairo. 5 June 1956
Promoting services to Far East destinations. Notice the Maharajah greeting Thai, Hong Kong Chinese and Japanese characters. They resemble the same figures used in coaster and baggage label designs for Bangkok, Hong Kong and Tokyo. The Lockheed Constellation L-749 service from Bombay to Tokyo via Calcutta, Bangkok and Hong Kong was launched on 7 May 1955.
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Bombay. 25 November 1961
This panel used in 1961 talks about the airline serving destinations in four continents, Africa, Asia, Europe and North America. In fact the airline served Australia as well.
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Calcutta. 20 March 1964
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Frankfurt. 14 September 1967
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New York, 21 January 1983
Roma. 4 March 1985
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Paris. 4 September 1991
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Brussels. 3 December 1993
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Here we have the airline advertising its Boeing 747 service, which was in fact introduced a good twenty years earlier, on 21st May 1971.
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This panel has just our Maharajah, always courteous, always graceful, inviting you to fly Air-India.
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Air-India Business Stationery
Examples of stationary provided to passengers for in-flight use.
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Special event promotional labels issued by Air-India
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The International Eucharistic Congress was held in Bombay in 1964, and His Holiness Pope Paul VI flew from Rome to Bombay in a special Air-India flight.
On the left we have an imperforated sheet of 8 labels, and above is a single perforated example. |
On the top we have an Air-India label issued when the airline flew the Kenyan Olympic team to Tokyo in 1964.
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Air-India Boeing 707
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On the right is the label issued which reads INTERNATIONAL TOURISM YEAR 1967. The label is used on an Air-India commercial use cover hand-stamped ERNAKULAM.
Special covers for Postage Stamps sold to passengers for in-flight use
The airline provided guest stationary for in-flight use to passengers. Along with this, postage stamps were sold is special envelopes made out of hand made paper. Here are some examples.
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