36 JANUARY 2016Around the islands
Isle of Man Post Office joins forces with the
Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) to celebrate
the Society’s 150th anniversary in January with
a set of eight stamps capturing ‘mankind’s
exploration to the skies and beyond’.
Established in 1866, the RAeS is the
world’s only professional body dedicated to
the entire aerospace community, and acts
as a central forum for the exchange of ideas
whilst pledging a leading role in influencing
opinion in aerospace matters.
The set of stamps explore the history
of aerospace innovation and exploration,picking out notable points in the story of
flight, including Vincenzo Lunardi’s 1784
hydrogen balloon flight; a Rolls-Royce Trent
900 turbofan engine; and, bringing the story
up to date with perhaps the most significant
achievement, the International Space Station.
The stamps incorporate a ‘selective varnish
and metallic over-layered print technique,
adding shine and lustre to the set’.
Lee Balthazor FRAeS, Chair of the RAeS
2016 Celebrations Steering Committee, said:
‘The development of this stamp collection
with the Isle of Man Post Office has beenan exciting project for the RAeS and the
National Aerospace Library and has sparked
plenty of intellectual debate about the key
advances in the history of aeronautics. I
am proud that this collection will provide
a unique record of some of the most
important innovations in aerospace science
and technology as we celebrate the 150th
anniversary of the RAeS.’ISLE OF MAN
Stamp details
Royal Aeronautical Society
150th anniversaryIssue date: 12 January, 2016
Design: EJC Design
Printer: Lowe-Martin Group,
offset lithography
Perforations: 14
1st - ascent of Vincenzo Lunardi, 1784
1st - Sir George Cayley and his
1853 designs
77p - Wright, A at Reims, 1909
77p - Yuri Gagarin
93p - Hawker P1127
93p - British Airways Concorde
£1.24 - Rolls Royce Trent 900
£1.24 - International Space StationA history of ight
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