posted 07-18-2025 05:14 PM               

This display of nine ASTP covers will serve as a very modest way to honor ASTP on its 50th anniversary.

However, the last four covers were chosen primarily to indicate the huge number and variety of covers for ASTP tests and events, with many of minor significance. ASTP was a time of great space cover popularity and production, with little missed (some have considered ASTP as a great example of space cover overload/overkill, but I'm very glad to have what I have).

The final four covers are for: the first arrival of the Soviet delegation at the Manned Spacecraft Center to begin early joint mission talks (Space City Cover Society cover); the US Apollo crew's arrival in the USSR for training; hypergolic fuel loading of the Apollo spacecraft; and the arrival of the Apollo astronauts at Patrick Air Force Base, Florida, three days before launch.

It's this collector's opinion that ASTP resulted in one of the most prolific productions and variations of covers and cancels of all the US manned spaceflights and it possibly was the highpoint of US space cover collecting, as interest was world-wide.

Photo of the Apollo and Soviet ASTP crews, along with a cover autographed by four ASTP Flight Directors: Donald Puddy, Neil Hutchinson, Frank Littler and Pete Frank.

Soviet air letter sheet canceled for the Soyuz launch and signed by the two ASTP cosmonaut crew members, Leonov and Kubasov. Below, a cover canceled at Zvezdniy/Star City, USSR, on July 17 for the historic Soyuz/Apollo spacecraft linkup (the cover was obtained from early collector, Leo Malz, who many of us Space Unit members should remember).

The US ASTP astronauts visited Star City, USSR, on the ASTP post-flight European Goodwill Tour and have autographed this cover. Below, this cover from Washington, DC, marks the beginning of the US multi-city tour.

The top cover marks the arrival of the Soviet delegation in the US to begin ASTP mission talks, with the bottom cover marking the arrival of the US crew in the USSR for training.

This cover was canceled on the first day of spacecraft Hypergolic fuel loading and below, the arrival of the US crew at Patrick AFB, FL, three days prior to launch (Final two covers, credit: Ken Havekotte).

posted 07-22-2025 11:29 AM               

Was hoping to see some other ASTP covers posted, but while waiting have posted four more covers hopefully of some interest.

The top cover is from the USNS Vanguard that provided support, including tracking, telemetry and communication for the ASTP mission. It has an interesting array of rubber stamp impressions, including a very impressive ASTP cachet, a Military Sealift Command cachet and a New York, NY cancel for its return to port after the ASTP mission.

The bottom cover is from the ASTP Prime Recovery Ship New Orleans and was canceled on the date that it left port for the recovery area. The ship's cachet was applied later, as the ship's post office was very receptive to applying the ship's cachet to covers (This useful information was probably provided by the Space Unit's Astrophile space collector news publication, which was a primary source of collector information back in the dark ages of space collecting - pre-Internet).

The top cover was canceled at the Honolulu, Hawaii/Hickam AFB Sta. on the date that the ASTP crew arrived there via helicopter. And was nicely signed by the commander of the Naval Spacecraft Recovery Force in the Pacific.

The ASTP crew returned to KSC for the ASTP Awards Ceremony on September 16, after recovering at the Tripler Army Medical Center, Honolulu, from the mishap that occurred at splashdown.

posted 07-26-2025 05:11 PM               

We all know the excellent space cover artwork by legendary Carl Swanson and the long-time space cover producer by employees of the Johnson Space Center Stamp Club. I had almost forgotten that space cover artist Carl Swanson along the JSC Stamp Club joined up for a special cachet cover set in commemoration of ASTP.

Below are the covers referred to, which are quite detailed and well-done, for the U.S. ASTP First Day Issue of the KSC-launch of the American crew on July 15, docking and transfer of crews on July 17 with a special pictorial cancel for SPACEPEX in Houston, and ending up with splashdown-recovery of the U.S. astronaut crew on July 24 with Houston as well.

There may be another launch day designed Swanson/JSC Stamp Club issue not shown here that I can't recall at the moment. Happy 50th Apollo-Soyuz ! ! !