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Rescue by air

Search and Rescue

Stamp Info

Name Value
Date of Issue June 13, 2005
Year 2005
Quantity 1,750,000
Denomination
50¢
Perforation or Dimension 13 x 13.5
Series Search and Rescue
Series Time Span 2005
Printer Lowe-Martin Company Inc..
Postal Administration Canada

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Stamp Price Values

Condition Name Avg Value
M-NH-VF
Mint - Never Hinged - Very Fine Only available to paid users
U-VF
Used - Very Fine Only available to paid users
* Notes about these prices:
  • They are not based on catalogue values but on current dealer and auction listings. The reason for this is that catalogues tend to over-value stamps.
  • They are average prices. The actual value of your stamp may be slightly above or below the listed value, depending on the overall condition of your stamp. Use these prices as a guide to determine the approximate value of your stamps.

Stamp Supplies on Amazon

Layouts

Pane of 8 stamps

Quantity Produced - 875,000
Current Purchase Price: Only available to paid users
Original Purchase Price: $4.00
Cancellation Location: Victoria, British Columbia
Perforation: 13+
Dimension: 48 mm x 40 mm (vertical)
Printing Process: Lithography in 10 colours
Gum Type: P.V.A.
Tagging: General, 4 sides
Paper: Tullis Russell Coatings
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Official First Day Cover

Quantity Produced - Unknown
Current Purchase Price: Only available to paid users
Original Purchase Price: $3.00
Cancellation Location: Victoria, British Columbia
Perforation: 13+
Dimension: 48 mm x 40 mm (vertical)
Printing Process: Lithography in 10 colours
Gum Type: P.V.A.
Tagging: General, 4 sides
Paper: Tullis Russell Coatings
Add to List

About Stamp

A winter dawn in the North Atlantic, 60 miles off Halifax. Vast grey rollers, their crests whipped by a howling gale, loom over the orange speck of a life raft. Crammed into it is the crew of a storm-battered ship that sank just after midnight. Cold and exposure are taking their toll, and the men in the raft are growing weak.

But as the sky grows brighter, they hear the sound of engines. Moments later, a big yellow helicopter thunders over the foam-streaked waves and hovers over them like a rescuing angel. Its pilot waves and the men send up a feeble cheer. In a few hours, they'll be safe in Halifax.

Around the world, scenes like this are played out every day -- not just at sea, but wherever people are lost, injured or in need of emergency aid. What helps make these rescues possible is COSPAS-SARSAT, an international system of satellites and ground stations that detects distress beacons and swiftly transmits their locations to local search-and-rescue (SAR) services, such as Canada's National Search and Rescue Program. Canada was one of the founding nations of COSPAS-SARSAT.

On June 13, 2005, Canada Post will issue a set of four domestic rate (50¢) stamps to commemorate Canada's role in SAR operations. The design of the pane is a little out of the ordinary, notes Danielle Trottier, Manager, Design and Production, at Canada Post. "This is a miniature pane, a double row of four stamps each, the rows arranged tête-bêche. This makes the pane reversible, so you can display it according to the language you prefer, and have the SAR logo appear correctly in both cases."

The designer of the issue is Montreal's François Dallaire, whose stamp credits include Volunteer Firefighters (2003), Imperial Penny Postage (1998) and Industrial Design (1997). Dallaire is enthusiastic about the tête-bêche format, because it not only permits each stamp's design to stand on its own, but also emphasizes the major overall element of the pane's design: two curves mirroring each other, each suggesting Earth as seen from space, with a satellite photograph appearing within each curve.

"The mirrored elements represent the north and south hemispheres," Dallaire points out, "so that when you reverse the sheet, the overall design is preserved. I like that symbolism, because Australia, for example, also does search and rescue. It helps make it clear that helping people in this way requires a worldwide organization. And by placing the images of the satellites 'above' the curves, the design makes it clear that it's satellite communication that's the key to making the system work."

Dallaire's designs for the stamps also suggest the multiple aspects of SAR. He created them around four themes: an alpine rescue, a rescue from the sea, a rescue by air and a ground rescue in which a dog is as important as the humans. "That's very important," he says. "We have to remember that animals also help save people -- it's not just us doing this."

With their evocative design and powerful images, the new SAR stamps are a fine commemoration of a service that has saved so many people from natural disasters and accidents, underground, on land, at sea and in the air.

Creators

Designed by François Dallaire

Similar Stamps

Reference

Canada Post Corporation. Canada's Stamp Details, Vol. 14, No. 2, 2005, p. 24-25; Vol. 15, No. 1, 2006, p. 4.

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