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113
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MERMOZ Jean
See original version (French)
113
-
MERMOZ Jean
See original version (French)
Estimate €500 - €700
Voluntary lot
Description
MERMOZ Jean
L.A.S. ‘Jean’, Casablanca, 10 February 1927, to his grandparents, the GILLETs; 2 pages, in-4, in blue ink on Lignes Aériennes Latécoère letterhead.
In Morocco.
‘We’ve had some snow. I’ve just returned from Spain, where I encountered a few snowstorms – a rare occurrence there at this time of year. I’m setting off for Cape Juby tomorrow. We don’t have our new aircraft yet, but the engines of the old ones have been overhauled. Modifications have been made to improve performance, so there’s less chance of a breakdown. Latécoère is officially opening the South American route on 1 September. So I’ll certainly come and see you two or three months before then, unless I go to France for ten days in April. […] If, for one reason or another, I were unable to go, I would leave the company in any case.’ He is considering a post as a flight instructor in Bolivia. “In America I’ll be safe. There’s no comparison with Dakar, where everything is unsafe. And the climate there is excellent.” He has put his car up for sale, waiting for a good offer: “In the meantime, I’m visiting Morocco. I went to Meknès recently, where I saw Sergeant-Major Coursault, who was not at all happy […] I think I’ve managed to persuade him to leave the army and join us. […] We are in the process of founding a Union of Civil Aviation Flight Crew Professionals, solely to defend our interests. The airlines don’t want to believe it, but we firmly believe in it, and they will soon find themselves faced with a fait accompli. How attractive the life of an airline pilot will be in the future!! At any rate, I fully intend to see that come to pass, for I hope with all my heart to continue in this profession for a long time to come’….
Correspondence, No. 104.
Source: - Jean Mermoz (1901–1936);
- Gabrielle Gillet-Mermoz (1880–1955);
- Passed down through the family
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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