MAIL LINK WITH BRITAIN

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 8, Issue 9, 19 September 1944, Page 3

MAIL LINK WITH BRITAIN

14-DAY SERVICE TO AUSTRALIA

: Civilians in Britain will now bo able to send a one-page letter by air to Australia for Gel and it is. ex» pected that, the average transmission time will be less than 14 clays. A similar scrvice J'rom Australia to Britain will lie introduced as> soon as possible. The rate lor civilian airgraphs from Britain to Australia will be substantially reduced when the new sei'vice and this example will also be followed by Australia. The Prime Mr Curt in i announcing these arrangements said that when he was in London the need for better air-mail services was I'cpresente.d to the British authorities. Arrangements had since been made for more aircraft accommodation, and steps were taken recently to divert mails from Australia to the India-Britain air route at a reduced charge of Is Gd a half-ounce. Sea-Ai-r Service A through air scrvice Avas not yet practicable. Australian mails, were sent by sea to Ceylon. From there they went by air to connecting with the Indian service to Britain via Gibraltar. Air transport from Gibraltar to Bitain could not be guaranteed but it was expected that it would seldom be necessary ' to send mails by sea over that, section.

Aircraft capacity available was not sufficient to enable the normal air mails from .Britain to Australia to be forwarded over the Indian route, and the British authorities had decided to extend to civilians in the eastern hemisphere the "air letter service" available only for letters, to. Servicemen abroad. All-Air Route "Communications, sent by the air letter service will be. guaranteed air conveyance throughout " Mr Curtin said "and it is expected that the average time occupied in the transmission of the, air letter mails irom Britain to Australia will be under two weeks. "The' communications must be I written on special forms ? which arc very to the air letter cards provided to members of the forces abroad for communication with their homeland. "The form is. a single sheet of paper of very light weighty which is. transmissible as a folder without an envelope.. The use of these lorms is necessary to keep down the weight of the mails; and to enable a low charge \to be made. "It is intended to introduce as earlj' as possible air letter services from Australia, and at the same time to reduce the present charges on airgraph but it is not practicable at the moment to indicate the date on which the new facility wi'll come into operation. "As soon as preliminary arrangements have been completed a further announcement concerning the matter will be made by the PostSenator Ashley."