STAMP ISSUES RELATED TO ICAO (1994-1995)

 

Maldives : 50th Anniversary of ICAO

 

Issue date: 31/12/1994

 

 

Boeing 747 from Virgin airline soaring above clouds; 50th anniversary logo.

This aircraft made flying both available and affordable to the masses.

 

De Havilland D.H. 106 Comet 4 from B.O.A.C. (British Overseas Airways Corporation) airline; 50th anniversary logo. This aircraft made the world’s first transatlantic jet flight.

 

 

Main runway at the Male International Airport in the Maldives; 50th anniversary logo.

 

Lockheed L-1649A Super Star from Germany’s Lufthansa airline, an aircraft that pioneered civil aviation routes to South America; 50th anniversary logo.

The caption displays: Lockheed 1649 Super Star, instead of Lockheed L-1649A Super Star.

 

European Airbus A310-222 from China Eastern Airlines, registered B-2301 in People’s Republic of China; 50th anniversary logo.

The philatelic notice mentions that this stamp “depicts the De Havilland Comet 4, the aircraft that made the world’s first transatlantic jet flight.”

 

 

Dornier Do 228-212 from Air Maldives, registered 8Q-AMB in Maldives; 50th anniversary logo.

This aircraft was utilized by Air Maldives for civil air service to the former British protectorate situated in the Indian Ocean.

 

Souvenir sheet.

British Airways Concorde supersonic jet about to take-off on a commercial flight across Atlantic at speeds faster than the speed of sound; 50th anniversary logo.

This sheet also commemorates the 25th anniversary of the first Concorde flight (maiden flight on 2 March 1969).

Imperforates.

 

 

Full sheets of 15 stamps.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Official First Day Covers showing the National Emblem in green.

 

 

First Day Covers with generic aircraft on the cachet (very funny looking aeroplane).

 

 

First Day Cover with brown cancel.

 

Background: The set of stamps highlights various milestones in civil aviation transportation for both the world and the Maldives.

 

Depicted on the first day cover, the Maldivian National Emblem consists of a coconut palm, a crescent, and two crisscrossing National Flags with the traditional Title of the State. The depicted coconut palm represents the livelihood of the Nation according to Maldivian folklore and tradition. The Crescent (a universal Islamic symbol) and its accompanying star embody the Islamic faith of the State and its authority respectively.

The words of the scroll Ad-Dawlat Al-Mahaldheebiyya are written in the Arabic naskh style of script and mean the "State of the Mahal Dibiyat", which is the name Ibn Battuta and other Mediaeval Arab travelers used to refer to the Maldives.

 

The flag of the Republic of Maldives is red with a large green rectangle in the center bearing a vertical white crescent and was adopted on 25 July 1965. The red rectangle represents the boldness of the nation's heroes, and their willingness to sacrifice their every drop of blood in defense of their country. The green rectangle in the center symbolizes peace and prosperity. The white crescent moon symbolizes a state of unified Islamic faith.

 

In its May 2007 issue (Volume 25, Number 5, page 102), the Scott Stamp Monthly magazine reports an error in the name of the aircraft depicted on Maldives Scott #2033 (see on the right).

Instead of Lockheed 1649 Super Star as seen on the caption, it should have more properly read Lockheed L-1649A Super Star.

The L-1649 version was the prototype of the Starliner, whereas the L-1649A was the production version, of which 43 were built.

Although Lockheed gave the official appellation of Starliner to this version of this ultimate Constellation, individual airlines applied proprietary names, such as Super Star by Germany’s Lufthansa.