39 SQUADRON, WW2

[Ross Debenham]

I attach 2 scans of a cover posted from Field Post Office 718, which was located in Khartoum. I believe the date of posting was 3 September, 1943. According to the typed return address on the reverse is 39 Squadron RAF Station, Khartoum, and that is where the situation gets strange. According to Mr Google 39 Squadron was at Protville II in Tunisia at the time. Can any of the air force experts on the forum give me help with what's going on.

[Michael Dobbs]

Ross

Your cover is post-WW2 - it is dated 3 SP 46.  What gave it away for me was the return address with the postal indicator M.E.F. 4 - such indicators were introduced in April 1946 when five numbers were introduced for specific geographical areas outside the main Command locations in Egypt and Cyrenaica (MEF 1-5).  MEF was for Khartoum.  Yours is the first cover I have seen with a purely MEF number, the ones I have seen were later MELF or MEAF numbers. Thanks for showing it.

Mike  :)

[Michael Dobbs]

Ross

I have had a quick check online and found:

RAF Museum website:
[url=https://www.nationalcoldwarexhibition.org/research/squadrons/39/]https://www.nationalcoldwarexhibition.org/research/squadrons/39/[/url]
shows:
In October 1945 the squadron moved to Sudan

Ministry of Defence RAF website:
[url=https://www.raf.mod.uk/our-organisation/squadrons/39-squadron/]https://www.raf.mod.uk/our-organisation/squadrons/39-squadron/[/url]
shows:
1946 - Disbanded at Khartoum, as a Mosquito operator, on 8 September

So your cover is just five days before the Squadron disbanded!

Mike  :)

[Ross Debenham]

Thanks Mike, I must admit I thought it might be 1946 as I couldn't understand how the sender would have been allowed to the details on the reverse of the cover in 1943. The "ON ACTIVE SERVICE" threw me as well as most of the envelopes I have seen from this period are marked "ON SERVICE'. Once again thank you for the information.