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US airmail service marks 50 years since start
On May 15, 1918, the United States inaugurated the first airmail route linking a racecourse near New York City to Spale Field in Washington DC with a stop in Philadelphia. Army pilots used box kite aircraft and Lieutenant Boyle briefly flew the wrong direction while another plane completed the delivery to Washington, beginning what would become a national network connecting 500 cities and laying the foundation of the world’s largest air mail system.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
United States
New York City
Spale Field
Washington DC
Philadelphia
Boyle
New York
Boyle's
Pew
Torrey Webb