Postcard album reveals tragic story

Chilcotts Auctioneers is selling a 1930s postcard album that relates pictorially the story of ill-fated airship production in the UK, including the tragic result of a maiden flight.

The album was discovered in East Devon, when the vendor was clearing out his late father’s home.

It opens with images of the R100, an airship built in the 1920s in Cardington, Bedfordshire. Different to its German Zeppelin counterparts, the R100 was oval in shape, streamlined and aerodynamic.

The postcards show images of the trial flight in July 1930, when the airship crossed the Atlantic to successfully reach Canada. There are several onboard shots including the staircase and art deco style lounge, with the interior looking like the inside of a luxurious cruise liner.

The pictorial story then moves on to the larger R101. It was, at the time, the largest manmade object ever to fly. Each postcard has informative handwritten notes on the reverse - this information includes details about the fitting of a new bay to give additional lifting power that increased the length of the airship by 35 feet.

The R101 took a short test flight on October 1 over London, Essex and the North Sea before returning to Cardington. The development team was put under some pressure to undertake a major flight to Karachi before completing any further test flights; the Air Minister, Lord Thomson of Cardington who had initiated the airship programme, had to attend a conference there.

Liz Chilcott from Chilcotts said: “This is where the story takes a tragic turn. The airship set off on October 4 with 42 crew and 12 passengers, many of them distinguished military figures.

“In the early hours of October 5, over Beauvais in France, something went very wrong and the airship crashed and burst into flames. One of the postcards show the wreckage, just a shell of the airship.”

Only eight people walked away from the wreckage, and one died three days later in hospital. The postcard collection includes pictures of the airship after the crash, the coffins of the 48 victims lying in state and the cemetery where their remains were laid to rest, in view of the hangars at Cardington where the airship had been built.

The snapshot album is a fascinating evocation of the fated history of airships in Britain, particularly as the original owner had such intimate knowledge of the airships, suggesting that he may have been involved in their development programme. It is a difficult item to value but is estimated at between £150 and £200.

It is included in the December 2 Fine Art, Antiques and Collectors Items sale at Chilcotts Silver Street sale room in Honiton, close to Honiton Community College. Viewing is on Thursday, 9am to 5pm, Friday 9am to 7pm and on Sale Day from 8:30am. The sale starts at 10am. For more information visit the website.