Italian auxiliary cruiser Ramb II significant presence of Royal Navy in the Red Sea. With the start of Operation Compass in North Africa and the defeat of the Italian troops at Sidi Barrani on 9-12 December 1940, it became clear that it would be impossible for Italian troops in Libya to reach Italian East Africa to break its isolation. The fuel supplies were dwindling and were projected to be exhausted by June 1941. In anticipation of the inevitable fall of the colony, a plan was developed to send as many ships as possible to Japan or occupied France and to destroy all other ships that
Postage stamps and postal history of Italian East Africa enlarged to include all of Italian Eritrea and most of Italian Ethiopia when WW2 started. The most well known series of AOI stamps were those called "Pittoriche" issues in 1938 and 1939/1940. The "Buono Posta Aerea" of April 1941 is the only one showing the former British Somaliland annexed to A.O.I in a map of Italian East Africa. Postage stamps and postal history of Italian East Africa Postage stamps and postal history of Italian East Africa are related to the stamps and their history issued by the Kingdom of Italy between 1936 and 1941 for use in Italian East Africa,