Bidspirit auction | Portugal * 1914/18 – World

Portugal * 1914/18 – World War I. French military personnel in Portugal. Censorship. Exempt from rate. Envelope circulated from Azambuja (May 14, 1917) to Paris, without rate, opened by the censorship in Lisbon and closed with a white band with the legend in black “OPENED / BY / CENSORSHIP” and with the violet stamp of censor no. 43 (May 15, 1917). Although it contained the mention of military correspondence, it was not considered exempt from rate and was rate-paid at 0.50 francs, handwritten in blue. Stamp of the military unit stamped in blue “MILITARY AERONAUTICAL SCHOOL / VILA NOVA DA RAINHA”. To attract volunteers for the first pilot training course, Captain Norberto Guimarães, in March 1917, carried out an aeronautical propaganda flight with stops in several cities, managing to get many officers from the units visited to join, forming an initial group that started the first military pilot training course at the Vila Nova da Rainha Pilot School. From there came pilots like Sarmento de Beires or Pinheiro Correia, who in the following years starred in some of the most heroic feats in the history of Portuguese Aviation.