Reunion’s first airmail stamp overprinted for use on mail carried on 1937 flight to Paris

Jun 25, 2025, 8 AM

Stamp Market Tips by Henry Gitner and Rick Miller

Reunion is an overseas department of France situated on a relatively large tropical island (970 square miles) in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar and south of Mauritius. The island was uninhabited when it was discovered by Portuguese explorer Diogo Fernandes Pereira in 1507. The Portuguese failed to settle the island, and the French arrived in 1638 and formally claimed the island in 1642.

Over the years, French colonists and slaves, laborers, and indentured servants from Madagascar, east Africa, Malaya, Vietnam, China and India gave the island its very mixed population. Today the population of the island is about 900,000.

Reunion issued its first stamps (Scott 1-2), a pair of world class rarities, in 1852. On Jan. 1, 1975, stamps of France superseded those of Reunion.

On Jan. 20, 1937, three French aviators, Laurent, Touge and Lenier, took off carrying airmail from Mauritius to Reunion in a Farman 199 christened Roland Garros after the pioneer French aviator and World War I ace. After landing in Reunion and picking up more mail, the plane lifted off for Paris on Jan. 26, 1937. Flying in stages, the French aviators arrived in Paris on Feb. 12, 1937.

To frank the airmail carried from Reunion, postal authorities overprinted the 50¢ red Waterfowl Lake and Anchain Peak stamp (Scott 141) “Reunion – France, par avion, Roland Garros” in blue ink in three lines (Scott C1).

The Scott Classic Specialized Catalogue of Stamps and Covers 1840-1940 values the first Reunion airmail stamp at $290 in unused, hinged condition and $250 in postally used condition. The stamp is a good buy in fine-very fine grade at around 70 percent of Scott catalog value.

This stamp is popular with France and area collectors and aviation topical collectors. Flown covers franked with the stamp are eagerly sought by aerophilately collectors.

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