South Africa: Missing Postage Collected from Sender

 

South Africa 5c aerogramme posted at Cape Town (25-X 1970) to Canada.

The aerogramme rate to Canada was 10c. Therefore, the aerogramme was returned to the sender who paid the missing postage in cash at the post office: red „Postage Paid“ handstamp.

South Africa Aerogramme "Damaged by Cancelling Machine"

 

6d aerogramme with instructional handstamp „Damaged by Cancelling Machine“ and several „Officially Sealed“ labels applied by the US Post Office Department.

UK: Air Letter Posted from South Africa

UK 6d air letter posted in Cape Town, South Africa, in July 1950. South African circular “T 4d” tax handstamp. Not complying with UPU rules this air letter was (i) taxed (less than) single deficiency only (4d UPU letter rate) and (ii) the amount due was not endorsed in UPU centimes. It even did not match the required postage due.

The air letter was diverted to surface mail, as the “By Air Mail” routing instruction was voided with red pencil. The UPU letter rate in July 1950 was 4½d. Hence, two times this amount should have been marked postage due.

The correct amount in UPU centimes would have been 90 UPU centimes because 1d = 10 UPU centimes at the time of posting. However, in the US (which had 3 UPU ctms = 1 cent) a postage due of only 10 cent was charged to the addressee. 

Most likely, the UDS postal authorities did not recognize that the UK air letter was posted from South Africa and was marked postage due there. They mistook the taxation mark as a British one. The conversion rate between British currency and UPU centimes was 1d = 7 UPU centimes, yielding 4d = 28 UPU ctms, which was than converted into US cents at 3 UPU ctms = 1 cent (after rounding up).

South Africa: Aerogramme containing an enclosure

Sent from Cape Town (25 VI 1971) to Detmold, Germany, the aerogramme contained an enclosure. Boxed bilingual instructional handstamp „Contrary to Regulations“.

As an air mail letter, the item was short paid 10c, which was endorsed below the indicium. The item was returned to the sender who paid the missing 10c at the post office (red “Postage paid” handstamp).

South Africa: Aerogramme Sent from Marion Island

NGK #6 - Sent from tiny Marion Island, one of the two Price Edward Islands in the subantarctic Indian Ocean, and postmarked Port Elizabeth (31 X 48), to the UK. Cachet „Marion Island / South Indian Ocean“. 

Marion Island is not permanently inhabitaTed, but a team of researchers is working there.
Philatelic.

South Africa: No Air Letter Service to Denmark in Sep 1946

6d air letter sent from Johannesburg (13 IX 46) to Denmark. At the time of posting, air letter service between South Africa and Denmark was not yet established.  

Taxed as a short paid air mail letter: „T“-handstamp, endorsed „160“ UPU centimes.  As an air mail letter (1s 6d per ½ oz) the item was short paid by 1s, double deficiency 2s. The conversion rate was 3d = 20 UPU ctms, so 2s = 24d = 160 UPU ctms.

The item was received at Kastrup on 21 Sep 1946 and forwarded to Norre Sundby (24 Sep 46).  Danish postage due stamps on the back panel (some torn off).

South Africa: 1949 Aerogramme Used in 1964

This is the 1949 air letter with vertical lines for the sender's address on the back panel (NGK #10), used in 1964. The pre-payment of 6d was not valid anymore, so a 5c stamp was added to pay for the aerogramme rate in 1964.

South Africa: 3 Cut-outs from Air Letter Used as Postage Stamps

Three cut-outs from the first South African air letter used as the 9d franking on an ordinary air mail letter to the UK.

South Africa: Early Air Letter Uprated to full Air Mail Letter Rate

3d air letter uprated to the 2s 6d full air mail letter rate, because at the time of posting (Queenstown, 29 APR 46) air letter service to the US was not yet established.

South Africa: No Air Letter Service to the US in 1946

South Africa #2 (greyish buff paper) sent on 17 XII 46 to the US. Air letter service to the US was not yet available, so the air letter was treated as a short paid air mail letter (bilingual handstamp "Insufficiently prepaid for transmission / by Air Mail") and diverted to surface mail (instructional handstamp "Not in the Air Mails").

South Africa: 2011 Tortoise Shell Cosmetic Containers Aerogramme

It is sometimes hard to get recent aerogrammes commercially used. Thanks to Ronald who visited South Africa for his holidays I've got this nice 2011 aerogramme depicting art objects (tortoise shell cosmetic containers).

Australia: Service to Angola Suspended

Australia A-48 sent from SYDNEY (15 OCT 1979) to Luanda, Angola. The aerogramm went via South Africa, where the bilingual instructional handstamp " Service suspended / Diens gestaak" was applied. The aerogramme was returned to Australia (arrival cancel of GLEBE 8 JUL 1980, on reverse).

The service from South Africa to Angola was suspended because of the South African Border War (aka Angolan Bush War). In this war,  South Africa together with the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola, UNITA) fought against the Angolan government, South-West Africa People's Organisation (SWAPO), and their allies (mainly Cuba).

South Africa: Australian Airletter Franked with South Africa Stamp

Australia #2 used in South Africa in 1955. Franked at the 1 Shilling air mail letter rate to European destinations. Type designation "Airletter" crossed out to indicate posting as an ordinary air mail letter.

South Africa: Postage Partly Paid in Cash

South African Aerogramme sent from Cape Town (5. 1. 1970) to Australia. The 10 c aerogramme rate was half-and-half pre-paid and paid in cash, as is documented by the red "Port Payé" handstamp.

South Africa: UK Aerogramme Cut-Out on Aerogramme Form not Accepted as Paquebot Mail

Cut-out from a UK 6 d aerogramme used as franking on aerogramme form from South Africa to the UK. 

Written on board of the Dominion Monarch, which travelled the London to Wellington, NZ, route via Cape Town, South Africa. The aerogramme was fed into the postal network at Cape Town on 9 VII 54.

It was marked with a four-line bilingual handstamp „Insufficiently Prepaid for / Transmission by Air Mail“ and taxed 4 d.

According to the UPU rules, the aerogramme should have been accepted as Paquebot mail if

• the postage used was valid in the flag state of the ship the mail came from and
• the mail was transferred in a mail bag from the ship to the local postal authorities at first port calling at a country.

So either the cut-out was not regarded a valid franking, or the aerogramme form was not transferred to the postal authorities in a mail bag but, for instance, put into a letter box.

The surface letter rate to the UK was 2 d, so double deficiency (4 d) was postage due. No apparent postage due handling in country of destination.

South Africa: No Air Letter Service to the Netherlands in 1946

South African Air Letter (NGK #1a) sent to the Netherlands on 23 VIII 46. At that time, there was no air letter service agreement between the Union of South Africa and the Netherlands. Hence, the air letter should have been franked at the 1 s 6 d air mail letter rate (which is endorsed in blue crayon "1 - 6 d").

As an air mail letter, the item was 1 s short paid. Double the deficiency (2 s) was converted into UPU cmts at a rate of 3 d = 25 UPU ctms. So, the equivalent of the postage due was 200 UPU ctms. In the Netherlands, the rate was 12 ½ cent = 25 UPU ctms, which translates into a postage due of 100 cents = 1 Gld.

An 1 Gld. postage due stamp was affixed and cancelled at s'Gravenhage 19 VIII 1946.

Reference
NGK Aerogramme von Afrika, 2012

South Africa: Registered Aerogramme with Free-from-duties Handstamp

South Africa aerogramme (NGK #47 - straight sealing flap) sent registered from BARAGWANATH (5 JUN 70) to Brunswick, Germany.

Upon arrival in Germany, the aerogramme obtained a "Zollfrei" (Free-from-duties) handstamp, the first one I have seen on an aerogramme.


Reference
NGK, Aerogramme Afrika 2012

South Africa "Winged Springbok" Aerogramme

This is South Africa NGK #22, the 6 d "Winged Springbok" aerogramme with "Posgeld" in the indicium.

These appear to be different printings of this issue.  The second aerogramme in each of the scans seem to have a much bolder font used in the legends. Most likely, though, the bolder font appearance is only the result of a more saturated print.


Reference:
NGK, Aerogramme Afrika 2012

Australia: First Regular Air Service to South Africa

The first direct air service between Australia and South Africa (via Cocos Island and Mauritius) operated by Qantas commenced on September 1, 1952. Before that air mail to South Africa was flown via North Africa and took seven days in average. The new service had only a three days lead time.

The opportunity to send philatelic mail with this flight was announced early (in June 1952). A special cachet was designed for this philatelic mail. 

Special rates applied (per ½ oz): 

• to Cocos Island: 6 ½ d one-way, 1s 1d return
• to Mauritius or South Africa: 2 s one-way, 4 s return

Aerogrammes had to be franked at these rates, too.

This aerogramme was sent with this service (one-way). But is only franked at the usual 10 d aerogramme rate and should have been either taxed as short paid or rejected.

 

The aerogramme above is properly franked at 4 s for the return service.

South Africa
Short Paid Aerogramme Diverted to Surface Mail

Aerogramme (Müller no. 48) sent from DURBAN (slogan cancel  5 IX 1967) to Port Richey, U.S.
 
The aerogramme rate to the U.S. was 10 c.
 
A bilingual handstamp in English and Afrikaans language was applied “Insufficiently Prepaid for Trans- / Mission by Air Mail” to indicate diversion to surface mail.


References
Müller stands for Müller/Wiegand, Katalog der Aerogramme von Afrika, 1995