100 years of Belgian-African aviation marked with a stamp
Today, 12 February, Belgium is celebrating 100 years since the first flight from the European country to Congo took place. To mark this milestone, BPost launched a special stamp, featuring a photomontage of the 8,000 km Brussels–Kinshasa flight in 1925, operated by the aeroplane ‘Princess Marie-José’ and its crew.
This pioneering journey, led by Edmond Thieffry, was also the first successful crossing of the Sahara by plane, overcoming great challenges. It laid the foundation for today’s Brussels Airlines network, which will expand to 56 weekly flights to Africa in summer 2025, a 10% increase from 2024.
The stamp, valued at ‘1World’, which means it can be used to send letters worldwide, is priced at EUR 15 per sheet, and is available online and in ‘Philaboutiques’.
Meanwhile, Brussels Airlines carried 1,100 t of post to 18 African hubs in 2024, with Kinshasa (DRC), Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) and Entebbe (Uganda) the top destinations. (ah)