STAMP ISSUES FROM 2015 TO 2018

DPR of Korea : 40^th Anniversary of Admission to ICAO

Issue date: 14/09/2017
Miniature sheet (Aluminium foil). Size: 165mm x 58mm. Air Koryo Tupolev Tu-204 with the flag of North Korea on the tail. Pyongyang Sunan International Airport Building; this new terminal is open since 1 July 2015.
	Perforated sheet. 10,000 copies printed.
	Imperforated sheet. 1,000 copies printed.
Official First Day Cover with perforated and imperforated sheet. 200 copies printed. Note that the ICAO emblem is flattened.
Background: This issue marks the 40^th anniversary of North Korea joining ICAO. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea deposited on 16 August 1977 its notification of adherence to the Chicago Convention and commemorated the 20^th anniversary of its joining ICAO in 1997 by issuing three miniature sheets of two stamps and a central label; see at the following link: Korea (DPR of) – 1997 - 20th Anniversary of Admission to ICAO. The emblem of the Civil Aviation Administration of North Korea (shown on the souvenir sheet) is a composition devised from the ICAO emblem (with the two sets of three wings and the branches of the olive tree) topped with the Korean People’s Army Air Force Roundel (a red five-pointed star bordered by a red-white-dark blue circle, a marking painted on military aircraft of the country). The North Korean flag, shown on the aircraft, was officially adopted on 9 September 1948, after the separation of Korea into two separate nations. The national flag of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) comprises three horizontal bands: the middle band is red while the top and bottom bands are blue in color. The red band is bordered both above and below by a narrow white horizontal stripe. The red panel also bears a white disk that encircles a red five-pointed star. The red star stands for Communism and for the number of revolutions and battles fought for the freedom of the country. The color red marks the revolutionary ideals and the patriotic spirit displayed by the country men during the fight for independence. The star also symbolizes the role played by the Korean Workers Party in making the nation a better economic and political power during the turbulent period of the Second Civil War. The white disk represents the opposing principles of nature and also refers to the yin-yang symbol. According to ancient traditions, the disk also refers to the traditional Korean T'aeguk, symbol of the universe. The color white symbolizes homogeneous nature, purity, and transparency of the people of Korea. The blue bands are a representation of the nation’s independence and people's desire to maintain peaceful relations with the progressive nations of the world. North Korean Calendar: The Democratic People's Republic of Korea calendar or Juche calendar, (named after the Juche ideology), is the system of year-numbering used in the DPRK. The birth year of the leader of North Korea for 46 years, Kim Il-sung (1912 in the Gregorian calendar), became Juche 1 in the North Korean calendar; thus, the year 2011 is Juche 100. In the philatelic notice, the date of DPRK joining ICAO is Juche 66 (1977) and Juche 106 corresponds to 2017 in the Gregorian calendar. Philatelic notice: