AirMail100 Centennial Flight Project to Retrace Post Office Airmail Route on 100th Anniversary at Buchanan Field Airport
September 1, 2020 Concord, CA – Contra Costa County Public Works’ Buchanan Field Airport in Concord is expecting an increase in air traffic on September 11, 2020 due to their participation in a historic event.
Starting on September 8, 2020, a light airplane will take off from Farmingdale, New York’s Republic Airport to begin a 2,560-mile relay across the United States, to retrace the original air mail route from Long Island to San Francisco. More than a dozen private pilots, flying their own aircraft, will carry sacks filled with commemorative postcards and letters, destined for San Francisco.
Like the air mail pilots in 1920, the volunteers will exchange mail sacks between planes, each flying one leg of the continent-spanning route. Between September 8th and September 11th, the pilots will land at several airports across the nation to hand-off the mail sacks, ultimately landing at Buchanan Field Airport on the morning of September 11, 2020. From there, the mail will be formally handed over to the Postmaster on Marina Green in San Francisco.
Airport staff is providing advance notice of this historic event as it may result in an increase in air traffic on or around September 11, 2020.
About Contra Costa County Public Works Department:
Contra Costa County Public Works Department (CCCPWD) maintains over 660 miles of roads, 150 miles of streams, channels and other drainage and over 200 County buildings throughout Contra Costa County. CCCPWD provides services such as Parks and Recreation, Sand Bag Distribution and Flood Control throughout unincorporated areas of Contra Costa County. CCCPWD operates two airports, Buchanan Field in Concord and Byron Airport in Byron. For more information about CCCPWD, please visit us at www.contracosta.ca.gov/publicworks.
CONTACT: Buchanan Field Airport 925 681.4200
# # # #