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web-catalog        FAM Foreign Air Mail First Flights F7

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Page FAM007 (Revised 05/11/2007)

Background: The Post Office Department designated any contract air mail route flown by an airline into/from a foreign country into/from the US as a "Foreign Air Mail" route. The Foreign Air Mail routes became known as FAM's.

FAM-7: FAM-7 was awarded to Pan American Airways.
        Aeromarine Sightseeing and Navigation Company (subsidiary of Aeromarine Plane and Motor Company) and Florida West Indies Airways merged on October 1920. Florida West Indies had been awarded FAM-4 but lacked the planes to operate the contract. The merged company called Aeromarine West Indies Airways began the first scheduled international passenger and air mail service in the US on November 1, 1920 operating daily flights between Key West FL and Havana Cuba.
        The aircraft used were converted US Navy Curtiss F5L flying boats (Santa Maria and Pinta). They had been modified for civilian usage and renamed Model 75s by the Aeromarine Plane and Motor Company of Keyport NJ. The Aeromarine flying boats were advertised as being the height of safety because they carried their landing field with them and were operated by skilled ex-Navy pilots.
        Two years after inaugurating air service between Key West FL and Havana Cuba, on December 20, 1922 Aeromarine extended its flying boat air service from Miami FL to Nassau Bahamas flying its Model-75 named "Cordeaux." The "Cordeaux" was named after the Governor of the Bahamas, Sir H.E.S. Cordeaux. Mail carried on this first flight does not have FAM status.

AM
Aeromarine Model-75 (Nassau Bahamas)

        Pan Am flew three pre-inaugural flights between Miami FL and Nassau Bahamas on October 9, 16 and 19, 1928 and it is not known whether any mail was carried on these flights. After FAM-7 was awarded to Pan American Airways, on January 2, 1929 it inaugurated scheduled flight service between Miami FL and Nassau flying Fokker F-7 aircraft.

PA
Fokker F-7

F7-1 290102 Miami FL-Nassau Bahamas PA Harry Rogers $7.50
F7-2 290102 Nassau Bahamas-Miami FL PA Harry Rogers $9.00

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