| Ship | Type | Designation | Covers |
| Atlantic | |||
| USS Chilton | SRS - Amphibious Transport | LPA-38 | Y |
| USS Ozark | SRS - Mine Countermeasures Support Ship | MCS-2 | Y |
| USS Rich | SRS - Destroyer | DD-820 | Y |
| USS Salinan | SRS - Fleet Ocean Tug | AFT-161 | Y |
| USNS Vanguardi | SRS - Tracking Ship (Dual Role) | T-AGM-19 | U/K |
| Pacific | |||
| USS Princeton | PRS - Carrier | LPH-5 | Y |
| USS Arlington | SRS - Communications Relay Ship | AGMR-2 | Y |
| USS Carpenter | SRS - Destroyer | DD-825 | Y |
| USS Chipola | SRS - Oiler | AO-63 | Y |
| Tracking & Communication Ships | |||
| USNS Redstone | TS - Pacific (approx. 15S and 155E) | T-AGM 20 | Y |
| USNS Huntsville | TS - Pacific (approx. 15S and 75W) | T-AGM 7 | Y |
| USNS Vanguardi | TS - Atlantic (approx. 25N and 45W) | T-AGM 19 | Y |
| USNS Mercuryii | TS - Pacific (approx. 35N and 135E) | T-AGM 21 | Y |
| Not Involved | |||
| USS York Countyv | Initially assigned but later deleted from mission | LST-1175 | N |
| USS Paiute | Fleet Ocean Tug | ATF-159 | Y |
| USS Albany6 | Guided Missile Cruiser | CG-10 | Y |
| USNS Range Tracker | Tracking Ship | T-AGM 1 | Y |
| USNS Sunnyvale | Tracking Ship | T-AGM 5 | Y |
| USNS Wheeling2 | Tracking Ship | T-AGM 8 | Y |
| Recovery Control Centers | |||
| Norfolk Naval Air Station | Atlantic Recovery Control Center | N/A | Y |
| Kunia HI | Pacific Recovery Control Center | N/A | Y (scarce) |
| Ship | Description of Postmark | Scarcity |
|---|---|---|
| USS Princeton | Machine Cancel | Common |
| USS Princeton1 | Hand Cancel -Another with a clean hand cancel5,vi | Extremely Rareiii |
| USNS Mercuryii | Postmarked in San Francisco | Common |
| USNS Mercuryii | Postmarked in Honolulu | Common |
| USNS Mercury2 | Postmarked 26 May in NSW Australia probably Sydney - marked 18 May | - |
| USNS Mercury | Postmarked 26 May in Sydney NSW Australia- marked 24 May | - |
| USNS Mercury8 | Postmarked in Cleveland on 30 May | - |
| Norfolk Naval Air Station | TF-140 Emblem - Blue | Hard to Find |
| Norfolk | TF-140 Emblem - Black - Postmark contains 1A | Common |
| Norfolk9 | TF-140 Emblem - Black - Postmark contains 1B | Probably Scarce |
| USNS Redstone | Cover forwarded to ship whilst in Australian waters and postmarked at Glenelg, Australia 20 Sept 69 - text exists both in black and purple | - |
| USNS Redstone | Postmarked in Honolulu with machjine cancel | Common |
| USNS Redstone2 | Postmarked in Honolulu with both hand cancel and machine cancel | Uncommon |
| Cachet | Description of Cachet | Colours | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Navy Recovery Force Cachet Atlantic |
Designed by Morris Beck it shows an Apollo Command Module with Lunar Lander attached |
Maroon, Black | Rubber Stamp |
| Navy Recovery Force Cachet Pacific |
Designed by Morris Beck it shows an Apollo Command Module with Lunar Lander attached |
Maroon, Black | Rubber Stamp |
| Beck Cachet - Atlantic | Similar to Navy Cachet | Dark/Light Orange | Printed |
| Beck Cachet - Pacific | Similar to Navy Cachet | Dark/Light Green | Printed |
| TF-140 | Manned Spacecraft Recovery Force TF-140 Emblem | Black | Rubber Stamp |
| Artopages | Artopages cachet. See also this one. | Orange & Purple | Printed |
| Orbit Cachet | Orbit cachet with a maroon Navy cachet on top | Green | Printed |
| Ekas Cachet? Atlantic |
Seapower Controls the Land Cachet - Atlantic | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| Ekas Cachet? Pacific |
Seapower Controls the Land Cachet - Pacific | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
|
Ship |
Known Cachet Colours |
Beck Numbers |
| USS Chilton | Maroon | B792, B797, B798 |
| USS Ozark | Black | B791 |
| USS Rich | Maroon, Black | B793 |
| USS Princeton | Maroon, Black5 | B787 |
| USS Arlington | Maroon | B790 |
| USS Carpenter | Maroon | B796 |
| USS Chipola | Maroon | B788, B789 |
| Cachet | Description of Cachet | Colours | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| USS Princeton | USS Princeton postmark on an Apollo 8 FDC | Multicolour | Printed |
| USS Princeton | Navy Cachet with 1c Postage Due | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Princeton3 | Unusual cachet shows the moon plus description | Black | Printed |
| USS Princeton3 | Incorrect US Navy Atlantic cachet | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Princeton3 | Commander's Corner Card | Black | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Princetoniv,5 | A very special cover which not only has a clean hand cancel but also includes a black cachet - the only one seen | Black | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Princeton4b | Unusual QSL Ham Radio Card | Multicolour | Printed |
| USS Princeton8 | Interesting cover from a member of the Associated Press | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Arlington | Ship's Cachet | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Arlington | Beck B790 with stamps cancelled without any designation - possibly the USS Arlington | Bi-colour | Printed |
| USS Carpenter | Ship's Cachet | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Chilton | Great cover with a Navy cachet on a Dept. of the Navy envelope with a Commanding Officer Corner Card. Thus no stamp required. Dated 10 days before the mission with a USS Chilton NY postmark. And an airmail version. | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Chilton/USNS Range Recoverer | USNS Range Recoverer cachet with a USS Chilton postmark and a Navy cachet on the back | Black/Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Chipola | Navy cachet on a multicolour mission emblem | Maroon / Multicolour | Rubber Stamp / Printed |
| USS Chipola | Unusual postmark on a Beck B790 cover | Light/Dark Green | Printed |
| USS Ozark | Navy cachet plus soldier waving USA flag cachet | Maroon / Multicolour | Rubber Stamp / Printed |
| USS Rich | TF-140 Cachet | Black | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Rich | With an Apollo 8 cachet and stamp | Multicolour | Printed |
| Space Unit Cachet | Found with various SRS postmarks including the USS Chilton, USS Ozark and the USS Rich | Blue | Printed |
| Chicago | Navy cachet | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USNS Mercury7 | Cover with USNS Mercury Apollo X support cachet and attached interesting note | Blue | Rubber Stamp |
| Norfolk4c | TF-140 cachet on cover with a GB stamp - Another example9. | Blue | Rubber Stamp |
| Postmark | Description of Cover | Postmark Date |
|---|---|---|
| PRS Cover signed by the recovery heli pilot Charles Smiley | 26 May 1969 | |
| PRS Cover signed by the Commander Carl M Cruse | 26 May 1969 | |
| Signed by the Commanding Officer plus the main Recovery helicopter pilot & co-pilot | 26 May 1969 | |
| USS Princeton | Great cover signed by various members of the Recovery team. See associated letter signed by Recovery helicopter pilot Smiley | 26 May 1969 |
| USS Princeton | Cover signed by Stafford, Air Boss & Co-pilot | 26 May 1969 |
| USS Princeton | Cover signed by three frogmen | 26 May 1969 |
| Wonderful PRS Cover signed by recovery and photo heli crew members | 26 May 1969 | |
| PRS Cover signed by various recovery heli crew members | 26 May 1969 | |
| Main Helicopter Recovery cover signed by the pilot | 26 May 1969 |
Notes General:
i) The USNS Vanguard had a dual role, firstly as a tracking ship and then it was moved to a different position and acted as a Secondary Recovery Ship. Hence, two quite different cachets exist.
ii) USNS Mercury cachets exist marked 18 May 1969 and 24 May 1969
iii) Several covers with hand cancels have now been reported. Two of the three covers reported with the hand cancel also had a partial or very poor machine cancel. It appears that the Postal Clerk applied the hand cancels because of the problem with the machine cancel.
iv) Only one cover has been seen with a black cachet. It also has the extremely rare hand cancel making it a most desirable item.
v) The USS York County was initially assigned to the mission and was involved in a number of training missions. However, the ship was deleted from the mission due to a reduction in the areas required for launch retrieval support. Source: Dept. of the Navy, MSRF Atlantic, TF140 Report Ser 188, 6 June 1969
vi) An enlisted sailor named Howard Korth brought 50 number 10 envelopes to the postal unit on board the ship. His were cancelled with the larger Hand Cancel. Information from David Ball.
Notes Other:
1) From the collection of Eddie Bizub
2) From the collection of Luc Jallot
3) From the collection of Tom Steiner
4) Sold on eBay during 2010 a) 2014 b) 2015 c) 2022
5) From the collection of David Ball
6) From the collection of Garry Bock
7) Scan provided by Robert Fish of the USS Hornet Museum
8) From the collection of Joseph Volutza
9) From the collection of Eugenio Vespiano
This page © Dr Ross J Smith
This page is maintained by the Webmaster
Last modified on 4 October 2024
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