1928 USA Graf Zeppelin LZ-127 1st flight cover Lakehurst NJ to Germany

Attractive 1928 cover carried on the first flight of the Graf Zeppelin (LZ-127), flying between Lakehurst NJ and Friedrichshafen, Germany., AAMC #756

Purple stamp:

FIRST FLIGHT AIR MAIL
Via Graf Zeppelin
UNITED STATES – GERMANY
OCT 28 1928

Typewritten " VIA GRAF ZEPPELIN   LEAVING FROM LAKEHURST, NEW JERSEY"

'VARICK ST. STA., NEW YORK, N.Y. — OCT  1928' postmark, $1.05 rate: #C11  5 cent Air Mail stamp and #571 #1. On back 'FRIEDRICHSHAFEN  LUFTPOST 1 NOV  28' . Mailed to “Associated Tours Paris"

Horizontal tear right side to mid top, partially repaired

The Graf Zeppelin (LZ‑127) had only recently entered service, making its first flight on 18 September 1928.

The October 1928 America Flight was its first mail-carrying transatlantic voyage involving the United States, and collectors often refer to these covers as First Flight or First American Flight mail.

Mail carried on this flight typically features:

• A violet “First Flight Airmail” cachet
• U.S. stamps paying the special Zeppelin rate
• Postmarks from Chicago, New York, or Lakehurst dated Oct. 23–28, 1928
• Receiving marks from Friedrichshafen, Germany