Australia
Forces Mail Air Letter from "HMA Ship"

This airletter (British Army form W.3077) was sent to Brighton Le Sand, New South Wales. The message on the writing panel is dated December 16, 1945.

The airletter shows the machine cancel "Post Office Maritime" in red and the "H.M.A. Ships" handstamp.

The sender added the endorsement "Forces" to "Air Letter" and "Free". Australian troops serving in the Middle East and the South Pacific had, with some exceptions, the advantage of free postage on surface mail. Transfer by airmail was subject to an additional fee.

It is most likely that the sender was based at a ship of the Royal Australian Navy in the South Pacific.