"Aéropostale was, somehow, a different kind of civilization, where men felt nobler than anywhere else." (Courrier Sud)
Before leaving on his first flight from Toulouse to Alicante, Saint-Exupéry asked Henri Guillaumet for advice. "Guillaumet did not teach me about Spain," wrote Saint-Exupéry in Terre des hommes, "he turned Spain into a friend."
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Artwork of Postage stamp (accepted) 1947 stamp portraying Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Drawing by Pierre Gandon; wash-drawing and pencil. Courtesy of Musée de la Poste, Paris, MP-AT-948.3 |
Biography of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
| 1900 | Born in Lyon, France. |
| 1926 | Joins Latécoère Air Lines with Henri Guillaumet, and publishes his first short story, L'aviateur. |
| 1928 | Appointed Airfield Manager in Cap Juby and Rio de Oro in the Spanish Saharan Territories. |
| 1929 | Writes his first novel, Courrier Sud, in the solitude of Cap Juby. Made Operations Manager of Aeroposta Argentina, an Aéropostale subsidiary. |
| 1931 | Becomes famous when his second book, Vol de Nuit, wins the Prix Fémina. In 1932, Hollywood buys the film rights for the novel and releases the movie, Night Flight, starring Clark Gable. |
| 1933 | Disturbed by upheavals in the aeronautic world - one being Didier Daurat's departure, and another the political and financial manoeuvres that lead to the creation of Air France. |
| 1934 | Agrees to a contract with Air France. |
| 1944 | Saint-Exupéry's last mission. He vanishes over the Mediterranean, leaving in his room a letter addressed to Pierre Dalloz: "If I am shot down, I will regret nothing... After all, I was made to be a gardener." |