11 Field Postal Unit 50 th Anniversary

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1 11 Field Postal Unit 50 th Anniversary BRIG GEN H.J.G. KAMFFER 4 October 2014

2 On 9 October 2012, the South African Post Office celebrated World Post Day by issuing a set of 10 commemorative postage stamps in recognition of the excellent services rendered by 11 Field Postal Unit to the SANDF and its personnel wherever they may be deployed.

3 Set of FPU commemorative postage stamps issued in 2012 Mr Jerry Lion Artist of the 10 stamps and two first-day covers Maj Gen Keith Mokoape and the Deputy Minister of Communications, mrs Stella Tembisa Ndabeni

4 Stamps depicting a variety of activities relating to 11 FPU Parcels accepted at FPO 3 at Waterkloof Air Force Base Parcels being scanned before being dispatched Mail loaded into a Hercules C130 Soldiers awaiting the arrival of mail from home A typical FPO in the mission area

5 Field Postal Services in South Africa ANGLO BOER WAR( ) An interesting reference reference to an early South African military postal service is to be found in the writings of the historian Gustav Preller, who served as a military correspondent in Natal during the ABW: Thousands of Burghers who mailed their letters home in a postal bag attached to a tree somewhere near Colenso, and received their answers at a specified time from another (tree), did not realize the organization FIRST WORLD WAR( ) The need for an organized military postal service was sharply underlined by the First World War, and on 30 September 1914 the South African Field Post and Telegraphs Corps, manned by members of the citizen force, came into being. SECOND WORLD WAR( ) On 1 May 1939 Lieutenant-Colonel G.A. Leach was appointed director of the newlyfounded Army Postal Services, under the command of the quartermaster-general in Pretoria. Captain Pyper, Second-in-Command of the Army Postal Services in Pretoria during WW2 said: An army marches on it s stomach but no matter how full a soldier s stomach may be, the morale falls to zero when he does not regularly receive news from home.

6 The first campaign in which Military Post Offices with their own date stamps operated was during the Anglo Boer War ( ) British Army Post Office Cape Town Only a few days after the outbreak of the ABW on 7 November 1899 the British War Office issued an Army Order: A Field Post Office will be established at the Headquarters of the Army, and at the Headquarters of each Division and Brigade.

7 Boer Field Post Office during the Anglo-Boer War ( ) A Boer Field Post Office The Boers made some attempt to be up-to-date during the campaign and established a Field Post Office which was appreciated by those who could read and write

8 British Army Post Office during the Anglo Boer War A British Army Post Office in the Transvaal

9 Velddienst during the Anglo-Boer War( ) Cover posted from near Volksrust on 19 October 1899 with a cachet VELDDIENST to indicate that the sender could enjoy free franking. Cover posted from the Field Post Office near Newcastle 1 November 1899

10 Booysens Camp 1914 Booysens Camp was used as a mobilisation centre for troops during the First World War.

11 Cantonment Potchefstroom Post card posted from the Cantonments Potchefstroom Post Office on 9 September A cantonment is a military or police quarters.

12 Barberton Camp/Kamp

13 The Head of the SA Army Postal Services was Lt Col Leach M.M. who was appointed Director Army Postal Services on 1 st May 1939 and held the position until 31 st December His staff consisted of 1 staff officer and 7 other ranks. This Directorate functioned under the Quartermaster-General at Defence Headquarters, Pretoria. South African Army Postal Staff in Italy circa 1944

14 The establishment of 11 Field Postal Unit The necessity of an efficient postal service for troops in the field resulted in the founding by 11 voluntary postal workers on 1 October 1964 of 11 Field Postal Unit as a fully fledged Reserve Force Unit. The first Officer Commanding was Cmdt. Chris Gouws (1/10/64 31/12/66)

15 Field Post Offices in the period 1966 to 1994 as part of the South African Defence Force During peace time many Army Post Offices (APO) and Field Post Offices (FPO) are used in permanent army camps or during exercises or manoeuvres. The function of the Army Postal Services is primarily to maintain efficient postal communications between the serving members of the Defence Force and their relatives, friends and civil connections. Usually they are staffed by officials seconded from the Post Office. Up to 1966 very little was heard of the Army Postal Services. At the first Republic Festival (RSA 5) held in Pretoria in May 1966 a Field Post Office (Veldposkantoor) made its first appearance. Specially designed date stamp was provided. The design was that of the Defence Force emblem.

16 Postal facilities provided for the Republic Festival celebrations in 1966 Announcement in the Post Office Philatelic Bulletin: During the period 18 th May to 4 th June 1966 on occasion of the Republic Festival, a Post Office Military Unit will provide postal facilities for the troops from all parts of the country who will be concentrated in camps in the vicinity of Pretoria. The postal agency will be known as No. 1 Field Post Office and a specially designed date stamp will be provided for this office. The importance of this office lies in it being the first and only one of its sort in the Republic of South Africa.

17 Field Post Offices in the period 1966 to 1994 as part of the South African Defence Force 1 FPO: Exercise SPITSKOP near Potchefstroom from 7 April 1967 to 27 April FPO, 2 FPO, 3 FPO: Exercise SIBASA near Elandsfontein from 2 August 1968 to 27 August FPO: Exercise ENTERPRISE at Port Alfred Airfield from 13 September 1969 to 10 October FPO 116: Exercise BROLLY TREE 2 in Potchefstroom from 16 August 1972 to 16 September Here a new date stamp with the number 16 was introduced.

18 South West Africa/Angolan Border War Owing to circumstances on the SWA/Angola border an extensive investigation concerning mail distribution in the operational area was undertaken in December This investigation led to the establishment on 5 January 1976 of an organized mail distribution system in the operational area with Grootfontein as base. Field post office sections followed at Ondangwa, Oshakati, Rundu and Katima Mulilo.

19 South West Africa/Namibian Border War On 1 July 1982 the main Mail Distribution Office was transferred from Field Post Office 2 (FPO2) at Grootfontein to FPO 1 at Pretoria. A direct air-mail dispatch from Pretoria twice a week replaced the field postal service by which parcels from the Republic were sent by train to Grootfontein via De Aar, Upington and Windhoek. Letters were conveyed by South African Airways to Windhoek, from there by train.

20 Citation of acknowledgement In 1986 the Chief of the South African Defence Force, General Jannie Geldenhuys, presented the Unit with a citation in acknowledgement of 10 years of uninterrupted service in the operational area.

21 Postal services rendered by 11 FPU after 1994 During the integration process of the non-statutory forces in 1994 at Bloemfontein and during Operation Boleas in 1998 in Lesotho 11 FPU also played a role in supporting the SANDF. Since the SANDF s involvement in peacekeeping operations in Africa in 2000, 11 Field Postal Unit was reactivated to deliver a field postal service to the SANDF and its deployed members. Field Post Office 3 (FPO3) was then established at the Waterkloof Air Force Base in Pretoria to handle all mail to and from the mission areas.

22 Developed a user-friendly system for SANDF members During the mobilization process all SANDF members earmarked for external deployments deployments are briefed on aspects such as using the correct postal address etc.

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24 VOLUMES OF MAIL HANDLED BY FIELD POST OFFICE 3 FINANCIAL YEAR OUTGOING PARCELS TOTAL MASS MAIL HANDLED KILOGRAMS POSTAGE AFFIXED TO LETTERS AND PARCELS 1 FY2007/ R FY2008/ R FY2009/ R FY2010/ R FY2011/ R FY2012/ R FY2013/ R

25 OFFICIAL COVERS ISSUED ON 9 OCTOBER 2012

26 South African Post Office and the South African National Defence Force 11 FPU governed by the Postal Services Act In 2002 the SAPO Board of Directors approved that post office employees henceforth paid in full and without forfeiting any benefits whilst doing military service as members of 11 FPU. This type of support from SAPO is really appreciated. To this day SAPO is the only parastatal that has embarked on this type of initiative. In 2011 SAPO released 27 of its employees from all over the country for a period of two months to do BMT in Kimberley.

27 11 FPU best Reserve Unit in the Signal Formation for 2013

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32 Conclusions 11 Field Postal Unit plays an integral part in the upkeep of morale amongst all deployed soldiers in the SANDF as they are responsible to get that all important letter or package filled with goodies from home to the deployment areas. They have lived up to their motto: we will deliver whatever it takes. They have maintained the traditions and service excellence of their predecessors over the last more than a 100 years and they continue to do so today. We extend our gratitude for their unwavering devotion to duty and wish them well for the future. We are all proud of you!

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