This Once-Popular Airline Freebie Is Now A Vintage Travel Item Sought After By Collectors

When we think about possible freebies we might get on a plane today, which are becoming ever more rare, you might think of socks, an eye mask, or a disposable toothbrush. But there was a time when airlines gave away more meaningful keepsakes, especially during the early days of aviation when everything was just a bit more glamorous. One such trinket, the airline postcard, is now a hot collector's item, according to Collector's Weekly.

Postcards, which grew in popularity in the late 1800s and early 1900s, were used by early airlines to advertise their new routes and airplanes and were placed into the complimentary welcome kits each passenger received upon boarding. Defunct airlines like Pan Am and TWA are particularly interesting to collectors, whether they are aviation enthusiasts or former employees, likely because of their style and how they set trends at that time in aviation history.

Back then, these postcards were particularly novel, and not just because the idea of quickly being able to write a message to a friend was relatively new. The idea of taking an airplane was still something extraordinary — and reserved for the elite — up until the 1970s, when the introduction of jets and the Boeing 747 helped push fares down and make air travel accessible to the masses. In this context, it's easy to see why a postcard that showed off your flight was something to brag about.

Today, there are many collectors who focus on airline memorabilia, postcards included. One such collector is Chris Sloane, founder of the Airchive, which is billed as a "virtual history museum of the airline industry." Among the memorabilia found on the website are various collections of vintage postcards from carriers like Pan Am, Continental, and United. "The airline industry represents the golden age of air travel: the '50s and '60s and '70s. The optimism, the luxury, and this kind of 'anything is possible' feel," he told Collectors Weekly, of why people are still so fascinated by airline memorabilia.

So where can one find these nostalgic slices of aviation history?  Of course, eBay is a good place to start, with a quick search for "airline postcards" turning up more than 80,000 results. Ranging in price from less than a dollar all the way up to $1,000 for a vintage TWA postcard signed by an actor and Olympic gold medalist, there is a market for these flight souvenirs. 

Of course, postcards aren't the only aviation items that collectors like to scoop up. Printed timetables, safety cards, and wing pins are just some of the pieces of flight history that are in high demand. Bringing us back to a time when flights included entertainment lounges and high-end meals, they definitely conjure up nostalgia.