Osmaneli (Lefke) ve İlk Uçak Postası
Osmaneli (Lefke) and the First Airmail

Summary/Abstract: Two airplanes took off from İstanbul to Alexandria to perform the Ottoman Empire’s first intercontinental flight on February 8, 1914. One of the planes landed in Lefke on the same day and departed from there on February 9 with a quantity of mail. The letters carried in this way became the first mail transported by air in the Ottoman Empire. In commemoration of this “first airmail”, a special “first-day cover” was later printed. The name “Lefke” is written on the stamp used on this particular mail envelope. So, why did this first airmail take off from Lefke? After providing general information about the emergence of airmail transportation and the Ottoman Empire’s attempts to own airplanes, this study aims to answer this question using newspapers from that period and relevant literature. In conclusion, it was determined that the objective of the mentioned two airplanes did not include carrying mail, and Lefke was not even on their flight route. The reason for the first airmail taking off from Lefke in the Ottoman Empire was related to one of the airplanes experiencing a malfunction and having to make a forced landing in Lefke.

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