Many thanks Frank - a perfect answer!

Mike  :)

Chris

Post Office Circular of 23 October 1940 on the introduction of the command address Middle East Command stated that it

[i]" ... applied to correspondence and parcels for members of His Majesty's Army and Royal Air Force serving in Cyprus, Egypt (including the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan) Palestine and Transjordan. ... "[/i]

I have another note that the Command eventually comprised Cyprus, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Libya (Cyrenaica and Tripolitania), Palestine and Sudan.

Under telegraph service I have a note which states:

The Post Office Circular of 9 September 1942 stated that the following addresses were issued as an addendum to the Supplement issued with the Post Office Circular of 10 June 1942 with dealt with the availability of the Concessional (CSN) telegraph service:

MIDDLE EAST FORCE
(which included Aden, Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Iraq and Persia)

It is clear that the command expanded (initially called Middle East Force, later Command) as the war progressed.  One would need to study the war diaries of the GHQ to establish exactly when additional countries were brought under the command.

Mike  :)

I have received the following query:

[color=maroon]Please find attached a cover with Received From Ships Postage Paid h/s.

Whitney states this was used in the 1980's Ref: 14/101.

I had an example in the past used in 1982 from the Falklands.
Has this mark ever been tied down to a particular conflict?
Any help would be appreciated.[/color]

I don't think it can be tied down to any particular conflict - it's too much of a generic cancel with no date.

Thanks, Mike  :)

A very interesting cover - I am always amazed by the amount of personal information you are able to find on Ancestry, FWR and other sites/ records - keep it up!

Mike  :)

Official mail to the Infantry Record Office at Ashford, Middlesex - postmarked Field Post Office 138 on 30 JY 45 from Guernsey.

Operation NEST EGG was the name given for the liberation of the Channel Islands - Force 135 was the name given to the forces assembled for the task, but did not expect a vigorous defence as the operation was only to be carried out after the expected surrender of the German garrison.  Advance parties landed on both Guernsey and Jersey on 9 May 1945.

Mike  :)

Marc

A very nice cover - as you say we don't often see covers going to the military in recent years.  This provides good evidence as to how mail to service personnel should be addressed in such circumstances.

Thank you for sharing.

Mike  :)

Yesterday we celebrated VE Day - Victory in Europe - we celebrated by joining in the 2 minutes silence at 11 o'clock and then at 4pm we went outside and joined with five neighbouring households (social distancing of course) celebrating VE Day. Nothing too extravagant - just a drink, scones and chat with a few Union flags flying.  We had to place our chairs on the public path as our gardens are too steep to place them on the grass!  We were there until around 7pm.

Anyway back to "cover of the day" - as it was VE Day what better way than to show some British FPOs in Germany during 1945 - sorry I don't have a cover dated 8 May 1945 to go with Frank's cover of 3 September 1939!

cover 1 with FPO 734 on 27 JU 45 and censorship stamp (FPHS Type A600) 15409 applied to indicate entitlement to free postage concession.  Censorship ceased on 16 May 1945, although the application of censor stamps continued to indicate entitlement of free postage until ceased altogether in July 1945.  Cover passed through Base Censor where it was re-sealed with EXAMINED BY BASE CENSOR label (A.F.W. 3312) and Base Censor (FPHS Type A600) 16000 was applied.

cover 2 with FPO 736 on 25 AU 45  - datestamps FIELD POST OFFICE 736 to 740 were issued to 3rd (British) Infantry Division Postal Unit RE on 12 June 1943.  Seen here with the Division within British Liberation Army (BLA) command address - on this date HQ 21st Army Group became HQ British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) and on or about the same day the address BLA was replaced with British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) for British Forces serving in Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Holland and Luxembourg. 

The writer is a Sergeant with 'O' Section, 3 British Infantry Division Signals and he is writing home to his wife.  He wrote the letter the day before it was postmarked (i.e. on 24th August 1945) and is feeling pretty depressed regarding a statement released on demobilisation: [i]" ... only group 23 will be away this year ... am afraid we have been led up the garden path by reports of speeding up demobilization ... officially the war with Japan is not finished yet ... they have not - cannot have done - taken the end of the Japanese war into consideration ... It is dreadful sweet when two people love as we do to be separated by the fools in authority who cannot see further than the end of their noses ... at the rate of release at present, group 27 should be out by the end of next February ... "[/i]

cover 3 an item for our RAF collectors (e.g. Nick) with FPO 760 on 24 AP 45 and RAF censor (FPHS Type R7) 69.  The datestamp is thought to have been allocated to FPO Z.118 which was located in Wunstorf (Airfield B.116) at this time.  It shows use of German stationary by a Canadian airman in Germany; the senders unit is given as 5 MFPS (Mobile Field Photographic Section), No 39 (Reconnaissance) Wing RCAF with No 83 (Composite) Group RAF.  No 39 Wing was located in Wunstorf until 25 April 1945.

Mike  :)

And don't let us forget the conditions under which it was kept - and if I read the date correctly (NO 14 00) it is nearly 120 years old!

A very nice collectable cover.

Mike  :)

I had hoped to post this yesterday along with other posts that involved Australian FPOs - but I was busy with other tasks.

This is a philatelic item, but it is difficult to get genuine postal history items - AUSS F.P.O. 4 dated 17 AP 95

Operation Tamar was the name given to Australia's involvement in supporting the United Nations Assistance Mission in Rwanda (UNAMIR) during 1994.  Australia provided an Australian Medical Support Force (ASMSF later known as AUSMED) to provide medical support to both the UN force and to the Rwandan people.  'A' Company, 2nd/4th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (2/4 RAR) provided the Rifle Company to AUSMED (some 34 personnel).  An advance party left Townsville on Sunday 6 August 1994 and arrived Kigali Airport, Rwanda via Diago Garcia at midnight 7/8 August 1994. The main body arrived during the week 20-24 August.  The Australian Medical Company comprised 93 individuals from 29 different medical units within the three services.  At that time the AUSMED contained the only X-ray department in Rwanda.  The majority of AUSMED were located at Kigali.

A total of 638 Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel were involved with AUSMED in two rotations (ASC1 and ASC2) during 1994-95.  These comprised medical and surgical personnel, an infantry rifle company, Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC) section (B Squadron 3rd/4th Cavalry Regiment), engineers, RAEME, signals and other supporting elements.

A contingent of AUSMED was at the Kibeho massacre of 22 April 1995, in which a small Australian team witnessed the massacre of over 2,000 people by the Rwandese Patriotic Front (RPF).  Restricted by the UN Mandate and the Rules of Engagement, the Australian soldiers could only look on in horror as to what had unfolded in front of them.  Under fire and often under the threat of the RPF, the Australians managed to set up a Casualty Evacuation station and conducted triage and treatment for the wounded Hutus.

Mike  :)

My own view is that they are ordinary air mail envelopes - different printers just having come up with a different style to that usually seen.  I don't think there are any "rules or regulations" on the size, colour or design for air mail envelopes - unless someone tells me otherwise!

Mike  :)

Whilst I do not have any covers from UNITAF I do hold the following information on the Australian involvement:

[center]Operation SOLACE[/center]

On 24 December 1992 'A' Company, 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (1 RAR) left Townsville, Queensland, aboard HMAS Jervis Bay bound for Somalia, as part of the first Australian battalion group deployed operationally since the closing days of Australian involvement in the Vietnam War in 1971.  Australian involvement in the US-led humanitarian effort in Somalia as part of UNITAF involved all three armed services and went under the name of Operation SOLACE.  The 1 RAR Battalion Group (Bn Gp) comprised infantry, armour and other arms and services and consisted of some 930 personnel drawn mainly from the Townsville based 3rd Brigade.  It comprised 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (1RAR), a reduced B Squadron 3rd/4th Cavalry Regiment, a Field Engineer Troop from 3rd Combat Engineer Regiment and supporting elements from 3 Brigade including medical, Military Police and Intelligence units.

The Australian operation involved the deployment of a battalion group of some 900 personnel, the majority from 1 RAR.  The Bn Gp deployed to Baidoa for a period of some four months; their mission was to provide a secure environment for the distribution of humanitarian aid within the Humanitarian Relief Sector (HRS) at Baidoa, a total area of some 17,000 square kilometres.  The Commanding Officer 1 RAR Bn Gp took command of HRS Baidoa on 19 January 1993 from 3/9 Bn USMC.  The 1 RAR battalion group left Somalia on 21 May 1993.

The Australians used AFPO 3 whilst in Somalia.

British involvement in UNITAF was restricted to RAF humanitarian flights under Op VIGOUR.  Two C-130 Hercules C.1 aircraft were allocated with four aircrews, together with necessary support staff - a total of 90 personnel.  The first of the two Hercules aircraft departed from RAF Lyneham, Wiltshire on 9 December 1992, and three days they were settled in at Mombasa and fully integrated into the US co-ordination cell and flying relief supplies into Somalia.  The aircraft, aircrews and ground staff came from the Lyneham Transport Wing (comprising Nos 24, 30, 47 and 70 Squadrons RAF) and the Lyneham based UK Mobile Air Movements Squadron RAF (UKMAMS).  They were supported by elements from the Tactical Communications Wing from RAF Brize Norton, HQ Provost & Security Services from RAF Rudloe Manor, Joint Air Transport Establishment (JATE) from RAF Brize Norton, HQ Strike Command, RAF Cosford and RAF Honington.  The British Government announced that the RAF would cease flying operations into Somalia with effect from 28 February 1993 and that all personnel would return to the UK soon after.

I have to thank you Ross!

In trying to look for my UNTAG cover I couldn't remember the FPO number so I went onto our Forum under "Draft Publication - Feedback Required" and searched UNTAG and came up with the number.  However, it also brought up:
FPO 1005  Sep 93  Cambodia BFPO 691 UNTAG

This couldn't be right - in fact it should be UNTA[u]C[/u] - United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia !

I have now corrected the master copy and will be going through and placing UN abbreviations in full!

Mike  ;)

I received this today in a mailing from a group of collectors in the Kent Federation of Philatelic Societies.

It is from the collection of Eddie Shilling of Medway Towns Philatelic Society and forwarded to collectors in Kent by Michael R Thompson who runs his [url=http://www.KentPhilately.weebly.com]www.KentPhilately.weebly.com[/url] website for collectors in Kent.  I thank them both for this item - I have not seen or heard about it before.

Mike  :)

Don't forget there is a write up of Richard's display on our website, with some illustrations - go here:

[url=http://www.forcespostalhistorysociety.org.uk/society/meetings-archive/2019/12-january-2019.html]http://www.forcespostalhistorysociety.org.uk/society/meetings-archive/2019/12-january-2019.html[/url]

Mike  :)

Ross

Many thanks for showing the two covers - nice to see modern items (i.e. post-WW2, my main collecting/research area) and especially so from other Commonwealth nations.  Although not my collecting area (I concentrate on British FPOs) and so my UNTAG (United Nations Transition Assistance Group) contribution is from British FPO 940 - Operation Prosperous (BFPO 644).

UNTAG was established to ensure the early independence of Namibia and to supervise and control elections as part of that process.  The elections took place from 7-11 November 1989.  UNTAG was at its maximum deployment during that time.  Its strength was approximately 8,000 (2,000 civilians, 1,500 police and 4,500 military personnel).

Regarding your covers - I noticed two important distinctions: one has a postage stamp and the other hasn't, presumably official mail.  That with the postage stamp, obviously a philatelic cover, has the usual AUST FPO 1 datestamp whereas the other cover, official mail, has the post free datestamp.  To me that is the most important difference.  But two very good covers.

Mike  :)