APO identification needed about a pilot

[Flyingkag]

Hey all,

I'm trying to reconstitute the Odyssee of a fighter pilot who joined the ETO in july 1944.

He was in Harding Field on 263rd Fighter Training Group on july 1st 1944, and he then wrote and sent "notice of change of adress" papers, that he sent to family/friends etc...

His new postal adress was given there; here above:

APO 16296 BA c/o 33 Postamester NEWYC

Should indicate that APO in or whith which one unit he made the travel to England in mid july 1944? his first letter from England still has that one APO; So it must give the indication of his july 1944 unit I guess?

It seems he should have made the trip with the "West point" troopship between july 17th (Boston) and 26th (Liverpool), or on Queen Mary arriving on July 28th in Gourock.

He probably then was affected to one of the USAAF Fighter Training Group (495th FTG or other ) in UK, then in late august to the 412th FS in France.

Thanks for any possible help about the mysterious APO!

Mathias , France

[paul kroon]

APO means Army Post Office. It has nothing to do with a unit.
paul

[udf_00]

http://cdm16635.contentdm.oclc.org/c...oll14/id/14319
No APO 16296, 16xxx or 16xx; only APO 162.

[Flyingkag]

Thanks guys!

I agree with you about the APOs having therically just 3 or 4 digits.

BUT...on several letters that pilot sent to his mother in USA as he was in England in july 1944, he gave that APO in his letters or Vmail:

APO 16296 c/o postmaster NY

he sent them from "somewhere in England" and his mother received them and answered him...and he received the answers!

So what??? Is it maybe a postal adress in New York and not in ETO?

I know that APO is a postal adress and not a unit, but my hope is that if I identify the place (adress) where the pilot was on that time I should then identify in which squadron he had been transfered!

Thanks for help, guys.
Mathias

[Flyingkag]

...another question about that mysterious and long APO number (good working, having made possible teh letters excanges between USA and England):

Is it possible that such a "long" (more than usualy) APO number should have been affected to one single person ? or group of persons travelling on same time with same destination ??? (for example a group of replacement pilots?)

Should it be a kind of "private" or "temporary" APO that he should use before he would have joined his unit in England? (was it possibel to get one "private" APO?).I repete it here below:

(APO 16296 BA 33c/o NEWYC F.l.)

One more precision; that long mysterius APO was first given to him, written with official army stamps as he was still in Harding Field (and later used and copied on manuscript writing). It was written on the "notice of change of adress" little cards that he sent to everyone as he left for the ETO.

So it seems it was a 100% "official" and good working APO!

Thanks for any possible idea/explanation about it!

Mathias

[Flyingkag]

Hey all,

it seems that my mysterious and long APO number was probably a "temporary APO" used as soldier or unit were on transit, waiting to get a permanent APO; it seems more than 21.000 such "temporary APOs" were given between 1941 and 1947; here some references and studies about it;

http://www.postal-history.com/allboo...t.militar.html

Mathias