Pass your parcel this Christmas

Volume 48, No. 22, November 30, 2006

JOLLY GOOD: Make sure to post all mail by the dates listed above, otherwise your Christmas cards and presents may not reach friends and family in time, especially those deployed overseas. Photo by WOFF Dave Pang

WITH the holiday season approaching, letters and parcels are a critical link to home and provide immense benefit to the morale and wellbeing of deployed members.

To provide Australia Post and Defence the best opportunity to deliver letters and parcels by Christmas, all mail (both to and from Australia) must be posted early enough to arrive at the Australia Post Defence Mail Facility in Sydney by the following dates:

• Armed Forces Post Office (AFPO) 1, 7, 10, and AFPO 12 to 20 by Monday, December 11.
• AFPO 11 by Wednesday, December 13.
• AFPO 2 and 5 by Friday, December 15.

If you are deployed or on exercise, you should check with your local postal clerk to determine posting dates from your location to meet the closing times.

When you are sending items through the Defence network, not only during the Christmas period but at any time, consider the issues of:

• cultural awareness – what is acceptable in Australia may not be the case in some countries where Australian forces are deployed.
• customs documentation and prohibitions – dangerous goods, prohibitions and restrictions apply to mail sent through the Defence network, so make sure the contents comply with all relevant prohibitions and restrictions in the country of destination and likely transit countries.
• humanitarian/aid material – remember that mail that is sent through the Defence network is restricted to ‘personal mail only’ for Defence personnel or approved agencies working with Defence, and does not cater for any material of a humanitarian or ‘goodwill’ nature. These items attract normal international rates of postage and should be sent through the civilian mail system.
• If you are posting an item from within Australia, you should check with your local Australia Post retail outlet, customer call centre on 131318, or visit the Australia Post website www.auspost.com.au to determine a posting date from your location to meet the closing times.
  

Special delivery

Letters and parcels for deployed Air Force members should be addressed to:

Air Force
PMKeys, rank and name
Unit name or operation
AFPO (add number)
Australian Defence Forces
NSW 2890

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