Buckling and initial postbuckling behavior is determined for thin, elastic cylindrical shells of elliptical cross section. This study complements the buckling and advanced postbuckling calculations reported by Kempner and Chen on a similar class of shells. The initial postbuckling analysis indicates that, like compressed circular cylinders, the oval cylinders will be highly sensitive to small geometrical imperfections and may buckle at loads well below the predictions for the perfect shell. On the other hand, buckling will not necessarily result in complete collapse. A series of simple tests has been performed which provide qualitative verification of the major features of the theory.