COVER N. 362 - KAZAKHSTAN

Postmark: Kazakshtan Aktobe 6 28.10.2023

Posted on the  28th October; received on the 22nd November 2023

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A nice Cover with interesting stamps from Kazakhstan, two of them aviation related. көп рақмет, Marat (and I hope I got it right...., so just in case, Thanks a lot, Marat!)

Without further ado, let's see what's in there:

- The Owl, the symbol of wisdom.... On 07JUN2001, (although the stamp carries a small 2000 on the lower right margin), Kazpost issued a three stamp set themed on Owls (30; 40; 50 Kazakhstani teńge)  which can, presumably, be found in the country. 

The 40 ténge stamp, on the cover, is illustrated with the image of a Long-eared Owl (Asio otus), a species with quite a global distribution, that encompasses most of Europe, Portugal included, Asia and North America.

 - On OCT2022, Kazpost issued an eight 400 teńge stamp set dedicated to forest pets. I would presume these to be some sort of comics characters, but I am really note sure about it. The pet on the stamp on the cover seems to be a little fox.

- On the very last day of 2002, 31DEC2002, Kazpost issued a two stamp set themed on aircraft, with 20 and 40 teńge denominations depicting an Ilyushin Il-86 and a the ill fated Tupolev Tu-144.

The Il-86 was the first wide-body aircraft produced by the then Soviet Union and the second such category aircraft to be propelled by 4 engines, after the Boeing B-747. It first flew in 1976. As usual it was used by the airlines of countries within the former soviet union sphere of influence, including  the flag carrier of Kazakhstan in its two iterations as Kazakhstan Airlines and Air Kazakhstan, although, at present, no civil operator uses the type, of which 3 aircraft continued to fly in 2020 with the Russian Air Force.

The Tupolev TU-144 was the Soviet Union's counterpart to the Concorde, and its maiden flight took place on the very last day of 1968, some two months before the Anglo-French design.

It was used commercially on the Moscow / Alma-Ata (Kazakhstan) route for only 55 flights after which the project was abandoned, following an accident in 1978 and the consequences of the oil crisis of the day, since the type was even more fuel-inefficient that its western counterpart. The immensely gluttonous aircraft had to fly full time with its afterburners on, contrary to the Concorde which only used them for take off (and what a sight that was, at dusk, in Lisbon Airport, where I saw it more than once).

- Kazakhstanskaya Pravda is a Russian language newspaper published in Kazakhstan, which saw its first issue on the 1st February 1920, when Kazakstan was part of the  Kirghiz Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic.

Its 100th anniversary was commemorated by Kazpost with the issue of a quite small, simple, 100 teńge stamp, issued on 22JUN2020.

- The armoured ground cricket (Damalacantha vacca), featured on the 50 teńge stamp, is part of a four  stamp  set issued by Kazpost on 23MAY2022, dedicated to insects of Kazakhstan.

- Sapargali Begalin (1895 - 1983) was a Kazakh Poet. His memory was honoured by Kazpost with the 50 teńge stamp on the cover, issued on 04May2020 as part of a series devoted to Kazakh famous writers. As much as I tried, I could not translate the legend on the stamp, next to his photograph. 

The stamps are cancelled with a postmark from the city of Aktobe, in western Kazakhstan, with a current population of 560,820.