1933 Gibraltar to Brazil by Zeppelin

1933 Gibraltar to Brazil by Zeppelin

The Zeppelin Airships did not visit Gibraltar at any time. It went from Gibraltar to London by Air. Then probably by train  to Berlin and then to Friedrichshafen. It went on the 3rd South American flight.

The Air Ship:

The airship used on the South American flights in 1933, was the D-LZ 127. It was named ‘Graf Zeppelin’ by the Countess Brandenstein-Zeppelin, the only daughter of Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin, on 8th July 1928 (the Count’s 90th birthday). It first flew on 18th September 1928 and scrapped in May 1940.

G.B. joined the Zeppelin Air Mail Service to South America in March 1932.  Zeppelin mail from G.B. , Ireland and other British Territories (including Gibraltar), was collected in London and forwarded to Berlin, from where it was transported by special connecting plane to Friedrichshafen, where it was loaded onboard the Graf Zeppelin for its journey to Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil, South America.  

In 1933 there was no direct airmail service between Gibraltar and London.

Mail Route – Gibraltar to London: 

Gibraltar mail to Great Britain was sent in ‘Closed Mail’ (sealed) bags, which were not opened until they reached London. They were handled as ‘Intact Bags,’ handed over to the Spanish Post Office at the border town of La Linea. From here they travelled overland to the railhead at Algeciras, thence onto Madrid and Paris. Surface mail from Paris was transported to London via the Channel port of Calais (usually), but also via Boulogne.