posted 08-16-2022 09:20 AM               

Note the covers below; The first cover seen at top left, a Goldcraft Cachet, was posted by a Navy destroyer vessel in March 1964. It commemorates a Gemini capsule mock-up being lifted by a "test crane" while at sea. While I have nothing against George Goldey, an early pioneer space cover producer from Canton, TX, it just seems that such an event to warrant a space cover issue may be stretching it a bit with such a minor event as this. It's only a boiler plate mockup and not even a real spacecraft!

Another event depicted, which I find is a bit embarrassing to me personally, are two different cachet covers for the Apollo-Soyuz (ASTP) "Spacecraft Ordnance Installed" activity at the Cape in June 1975, about a month before AS-211's launch took place. As a high school and college student working as a part-time space cover servicer during the 1970's, I had been asked to cancel and cachet covers from a few major space cover dealers at the time. My first reaction was: Why for such an insignificant event would anyone care for a "spacecraft ordnance installation"? I was told that "any and all related such events" would be of interest to those dealers in their coverage and selling covers. Therefore, as instructed by three to four veteran space cover dealers, I did what they asked for.

Other covers illustrated were done by well-known pioneer space cover maker and dealer, Robert Rank, a household name to us space cover geeks, of Union City, NJ. By far, and without question, Robert had produced thousands and thousands of quality space covers with his attractive and informative printed cachet formats. But with producing so many covers throughout decades, especially during the shuttle program era, are perhaps some events of Rank's Space Voyage Covers gone a bit too far as well?

Above is one of his Shuttle Training Aircraft (STA) flight tests, of which hundreds and hundreds of such flights had been flown during the 70's. This particular STA-local flight cover was postmarked Houston, TX, in July 1976. The aircraft had been flown by three unknown pilots that were not even astronauts. I can understand why significant STA/Gulfstream II test flight covers might be needed for a shuttle development program series of covers, but do you need so many of them? Heck, I do like them, and even got a few earlier STA-flown/carried covers in my own collection in addition to some key highlight STA-flight event covers by Rank.

Others by Space Voyage Covers shown depict early shuttle events for "preparation" and "hoisted" operations that should not be the primary focus or key activities in my opinion of those events being commemorated.

posted 08-16-2022 12:36 PM               

That's one reason why I like most all of Rank's cachet covers as they're extremely accurate, detailed, and with great photo-illustrations. I've only found a handful of his covers that were not accurate, mainly, with one of his Wernher von Braun covers of the rocket pioneer's death in June 1977 that contained several errors in a single cachet.

posted 08-17-2022 10:42 AM               

And, Ken, this is a very interesting topic you have started about covers for less-than-significant space events, tests, etc. We all have some — or (too) many.

For example, I have a cover with a rubber stamp cachet from Marshall SFC commemorating NASA briefing industry on the 1st Shuttle Cloud Physics Payload on May 1, 1975 (six years before the Shuttle flew). That's just one example of a number of covers I have of "minor" space events.

posted 08-18-2022 06:08 AM               

Maybe in the past there were commemorated many minor space events.

However, let me to indicate that nowadays in opposition, many of the great space events are not commemorated, especially outside USA.

An example, but many others can serve: USA rocket launched from USA spaceport bears a first satellite for x country. It is almost impossible to get an astrophilatelic cover from this country with exact launch date and postmarked in relevant place (nearest National Space Agency or National Satellite Operator), etc. Maybe, and only maybe, post from this country will issue a stamp but not more.

Even space consolidated countries as India, with own rockets, spaceports and satellites no commemorates their space events.

Another example: South Korea. Past Aug, 4 was launched from CC onboard Falcon 9 rocket the Korean Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (KPLO) or Danuri, which is the first Korean lunar orbiter. Has anyone has seen any Korean cover commemorating this event? We will ever see any space cover?.

It is sad to see now this contrast.