My boyfriend is an American soldier who stationates in Germany..?

Question

I live in Italy. How long does it take to a letter to reach him from Italy? He told me that if I send a letter to him, I'm actually sending it to USA, because my letter must be checked in the States, for safety questions, before coming back to Germany..

To OldeSalt: HEY, I'M ITALIAN! MY ENGLISH CANNOT BE AS PERFECT AS A MOTHER TONGUE ONE! :(

So, could anybody please explain me what do APO and AE mean?

Answer 1

two days....
but you can use Internet,much faster believe me

Answer 2

APO is American Post Office
AE is the central location for Europe (and the middle east too)
AP is the central location for the Pacific (Korea, Japan, etc)

And, yes, unfortunately, the mail has to go to New York first, because that is the central receiving point for European mail. You are looking at whatever time it takes to get from Italy to America, and back to Germany. The US Postal Service is pretty quick with deliveries, but it is the military mail system that slows it down. After it is received at the APO, it is sent through military means.

See if he can find a German address to mail it to... then you could send the letter directly.

Best of wishes to you both.

Answer 3

STATIONATES? What kind of word is that?
The letter doesn't go to the states for SAFETY QUESTIONS.
It's the way the letter is addressed. Unless the Italian post office knows what APO AE (and the zip code) means then it would be sent to the states..who knows where. If the Italian postal system knows what APO AE means, then it would be sent to that address in Germany. Ask your local post office for the PROFESSIONAL answer.

Answer 4

he's partly correct. he has an FPO or APO address.. which means it will get sent to either New York City or San Francsico by the US Postal Service, who will then turn it iver to the Military postal service.

but not all letters and packages are flagged for review or opening.

a letter fromthe Sates to Overseas takes about 10-14 days. I woudl expect one from Italy, using Italy's postal service will be twice as long, if not longer.

Answer 5

The letter will go to JFK in New York, be processed and sent to him in Germany. It doesn't have anything to do with safety - it is just a moronic thing that is done because the US Military is too stupid to change.

Answer 6

he also has a regular german address not only the APO. he has to ask his unit or the housing office if he doesnt know it. once he has it, than you can mail it directly to that address. i think with regular snail mail italy germany takes about 3 days.