Sunday 30 November 2008

London to Paris

No 6 in a fortnightly series of extracts from The Postcard Century

June 1929: Mr Sherwood, a passenger, writes aboard the aeroplane to his wife in Providence, RI, and posts the card when he arrives in Paris: Great trip! Half way to Paris - eating a bit of lunch.

The London to Paris route became a scheduled service in 1927. Here, presumably at Croydon Airport, stands City of Birmingham, one of the Armstrong-Whitworth Argosy fleet, its clean profile enhanced by the functional Art-Deco livery with fine lettering.

[The gentleman at the bottom right of this picture might well have been Mr Sherwood.]

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

No no that's Gattling-Fenn père, engaged in a very early spot of Hands-across-the seamanship. The papers he is holding are, I think, tide forecasts for Tyne, Dogger, German Bight and Humber. When fellow passengers pointed out to him that they were flying the English Channel he muttered something along the lines of "Yes but I'm hoping the sou'westerly they've been on about comes in and around we go. So much more bracing the long way".

He was generally able to enjoy the rest of lunch and a view of Hardelot-sur-plage undisturbed after this.