There was a time when the best way to send a letter was by pigeon. Of course, these letters couldn’t be very long because pigeons were only able to carry tiny pieces of paper. Sometimes, the pigeons successfullyreached the destination, while at other times, they got lost or died on the way. Later, horses and hot air balloons were used,but each of these had its own disadvantages, too. Luckily, today we have airmail.
On February 18, 1911, the first airmail flight in history was made. On that day, Frenchman Henri Pequet took off from Allahabad, India, in a small airplane. The flight was part of an industrialexhibition in the city. Anyone could send a letter to England on the flight for a fee. In the end, 6,500 pieces of mail were accepted. It amounted to90 kilograms—quite a lot for the small plane. All the money obtained from the event was donated to the Oxford and Cambridge Boys’ Hostel.
