Page 15 - Demo

Nuclear Weapons of the Atomic AgeU.K. Bomb Test, Anniversary Cover, Jersey, 1982Souvenir cover with a special cancellation commemorating the 25th anniversary of Great Britain%u2019s Operation Grapple. The cachet depicts the Royal Air Force%u2019s Valient leaving the drop zone off Malden Island in the South Pacific Ocean on May 15, 1957, with the Britain%u2019s first nuclear blast in the background. Testing in the area continued until November 1958, during which time nine thermonuclear devices were detonated. This anniversary cover was flown on a routine training flight, which included landing at RAF Marham in Norfolk, UK, which had been the home base of Operation Grapple. It is signed by pilot Flight Lieutenant D. Horton and navigator Flight Lieutenant R. Smith. Cancelled on June 15, 1982. Envelope stuffer on next page.