Editing Imperial Airways (section)

===Air Mail===
[[File:FAM 18 Round the World 1939.jpg|thumb|right|Flown cover carried around the world on PAA Boeing 314 Clippers and Imperial Airways Short S23 flying boats 24 June – 28 July 1939]]

In 1934 the government began negotiations with Imperial Airways to establish a service ([[Empire Air Mail Scheme]]) to carry mail by air on routes served by the airline. Indirectly these negotiations led to the dismissal in 1936 of Sir [[Christopher Bullock (civil servant)|Christopher Bullock]], the [[Permanent Secretary|Permanent Under-Secretary]] at the [[Air Ministry]], who was found by a [[Board of Inquiry]] to have abused his position in seeking a position on the board of the company while these negotiations were in train. The government, including the Prime Minister, regretted the decision to dismiss him, later finding that, in fact, no corruption was alleged and sought [[Christopher Bullock (civil servant)|Bullock's]] reinstatement which he declined.<ref>{{Cite book|title=History of Air Cargo and Airmail from the 18th Century|last=Allaz |first=Camille|publisher=Gardners Books |year=2005|isbn=0954889606|pages=97}}</ref>

The Empire [[Air Mail]] Programme started in July 1937, delivering anywhere for 1{{sfrac|1|2}} d./oz. By mid-1938 a hundred tons of mail had been delivered to India and a similar amount to Africa. In the same year, construction was started on the Empire Terminal in [[Victoria Station (London)|Victoria, London]], designed by A. Lakeman and with a statue by Eric Broadbent, ''Speed Wings Over the World'' gracing the portal above the main entrance. From the terminal there were train connections to Imperial's flying boats at [[Southampton]] and coaches to its landplane base at [[Croydon Airport]]. The terminal operated as recently as 1980.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-10-08|title=The Imperial Airways Empire Terminal, Victoria, London|url=https://londonairtravel.com/2019/08/26/british-airways-100-years-imperial-airways-empire-terminal/|access-date=2021-12-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211008091524/https://londonairtravel.com/2019/08/26/british-airways-100-years-imperial-airways-empire-terminal/|archive-date=8 October 2021}}</ref>

To help promote use of the Air Mail service, in June and July 1939, Imperial Airways participated with [[Pan American Airways]] in providing a special "around the world" service; Imperial carried the souvenir mail from [[Foynes]], [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]], to [[Hong Kong]], out of the eastbound [[New York City|New York]] to New York route.  Pan American provided service from New York to Foynes (departing 24 June, via the first flight of Northern FAM 18) and Hong Kong to [[San Francisco]] (via FAM 14), and [[United Airlines]] carried it on the final leg from San Francisco to New York, arriving on 28 July.{{Citation needed|date=May 2021}}

Captain H. W. C. Alger was the pilot for the inaugural air mail flight carrying mail from England to Australia for the first time on the Short Empire flyingboat ''Castor'' for Imperial Airways' Empires Air Routes, in 1937.<ref name="bluffield" />

In November 2016, 80 years later, the Crete2Cape Vintage Air Rally flew this old route with fifteen vintage aeroplanes – a celebration of the skill and determination of these early aviators.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.vintageairrally.com/rallies/past/crete2cape|title=CRETE2CAPE|date=2019|website=VintageAirRally|access-date=30 June 2019}}</ref>