These giant arrows were called Beacon Stations and helped guide the pilots of early airmail flights across the nation.
They were at the base of 50 foot skeleton towers that had a 24' or 36' rotating beacon and in the early days painted Chrome Yellow. Where electicity was unavailable they had a generator shed on the feather end of the arrow to power the beacon. The site number was painted on one side of the roof of the shed, the other side had the airway.They pointed to the next higher numbered beacon station, directing the pilot along his route. All arrows pointed east on the west-east airways and north on the south-north airways. They were built between December 1926 and November 1932, when metal arrows became the standard.
Beginning in 1911, the USPS began delivering by air, as brave men and women hopped into aircrafts to deliver the mail less than a decade after the mode of transportation was invented. Airmails of the United States or U.S. Air Mail was a service class of the United States Post Office Department and its successor United States Postal Service delivering mail flown by aircraft within the United States and its possessions and territories. For instance, the first regularly scheduled airmail service in the United States was inaugurated on May 15, 1918. The route, which ran between Washington, D.C., and New York City, with an intermediate stop in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was designed by aviation pioneer Augustus Post. US Sc# C23 1938 6ยข Air Mail Stamp National Air Mail Week First Day Cover FDC. US airmail block C25 MHR OG. Ending Apr 18 at 10:02PM PDT 1d 18h. 1956 US Sc #UC25 Air Mail Envelope, 6 cent, Entire, Unused, Size 13.
Airmail Us
Each photo is a link to a webpage with more photos and information about that site, including the gps location.
There were 34 Contract Air Mail (C.A.M.) routes that pilots flew the airmail over. We have arranged the arrows by their C.A.M. No._beacon No., airway and name.
Airmail User Guide
Example: 1_09 NY-B Bethany-means Contract Air Mail route No. 1, beacon site No. 9 on the New York-Boston airway, Bethany, Department of Commerce Intermediate Landing Field-(abreviated to DOCILF).
You can also search by State, by going to the Arrows & Beacons page.
These giant arrows were called Beacon Stations and helped guide the pilots of early airmail flights across the nation.
They were at the base of 50 foot skeleton towers that had a 24' or 36' rotating beacon and in the early days painted Chrome Yellow. Where electicity was unavailable they had a generator shed on the feather end of the arrow to power the beacon. The site number was painted on one side of the roof of the shed, the other side had the airway.They pointed to the next higher numbered beacon station, directing the pilot along his route. All arrows pointed east on the west-east airways and north on the south-north airways. They were built between December 1926 and November 1932, when metal arrows became the standard.
Each photo is a link to a webpage with more photos and information about that site, including the gps location.
Airmail Us To Japan
There were 34 Contract Air Mail (C.A.M.) routes that pilots flew the airmail over. We have arranged the arrows by their C.A.M. No._beacon No., airway and name.
Example: 1_09 NY-B Bethany-means Contract Air Mail route No. 1, beacon site No. 9 on the New York-Boston airway, Bethany, Department of Commerce Intermediate Landing Field-(abreviated to DOCILF).
Airmail Us Postage Stamp
You can also search by State, by going to the Arrows & Beacons page.