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Meteorological staff
Top, 12 airmen and airwomen all in uniform, one holding a balloon, standing in two rows in front of building, captioned 'Met Office Staff', 'RAF Chivenor'.
Bottom left, is of a bride in wedding dress with veil and flowers standing on path in front…
Bottom left, is of a bride in wedding dress with veil and flowers standing on path in front…
A member of Women’s Auxiliary Air Force
Half length portrait of an airwoman wearing tunic, leaning on a chair back. On the reverse 'M31 Clark'.
Interview with Edward Allan McDonald. Two
Allan McDonald was born in Hull and watched Alan Cobham’s Flying Circus as a child. He worked as an apprentice electrician before joining the Air Force. He served as ground personnel in Northern Ireland until he passed the exams to become aircrew…
Mary Brown at RAF Shawbury
Top left, a head and shoulders portrait of Mary Brown, wearing dress with a necklace. Captioned 'Cpl Mary Brown in Shrewsbury Town', 'RAF Shawbury Mar 1945'.
Top right, photograph of 24 aircrew in uniform, in three rows, in formal pose. Captioned…
Top right, photograph of 24 aircrew in uniform, in three rows, in formal pose. Captioned…
Mary Ward's colleagues at RAF Silverstone
First head and shoulders photograph of a woman in civilian clothes captioned, 'Joan Scallen 1944 Silverstone', 'Photo Oct 1946'.
Second, head and shoulders photograph of a woman in civilian clothes, captioned 'Helen 1944'.
Third, head and…
Second, head and shoulders photograph of a woman in civilian clothes, captioned 'Helen 1944'.
Third, head and…
Bomber Command people
Top left. Head and shoulders photograph of Ivor Jones, in uniform, captioned 'Sq Ldr Ivor Jones 1941 Linton on Ouse', ''The Colonel' had been previously Indian Army'.
Bottom left. Photograph of Mary Brown, civilian clothes, seated in a field of…
Bottom left. Photograph of Mary Brown, civilian clothes, seated in a field of…
Mary Wards' dog tags
Women’s Auxiliary Air Force dog tags issued to 893293 Mary Ward tied with ribbon.
Waving aircraft off
Large group of personnel (one holding a dog) waving with Lancasters in the distance.
Before I was in the RAF by Reg Payne
An account by Reg Payne of his wartime experiences. Too young to sign up at the start of the war he spent two years in the Home Guard. Training started at age 18 and lasted for two years. He served at RAF Skellingthorpe and his brother served at RAF…
Interview with June Pauline Brandon
June Brandon was born in India, returning to England when her father died. She joined the WAAF and went into the Photographic Section, loading cameras on Spitfires then carrying out development of the films. She served at several RAF stations,…
Interview with John David Pennington Cotter
John was born in London, Hendon. His family fell on hard times in his early years. John and his brother, Paul, joined the RAF in 1941 as a pilot and wireless operator respectively. After initial training at RAF Brize Norton, John was trained in…
Interview with Margaret Helen Day
As her father was in the Royal Navy, Margaret attended school in Gibraltar, Portsmouth, and (after her mother’s death) Malta, before returning to Gosport in the UK when she was eleven. In 1939, she was fifteen and working for a company making soft…
Interview with Lawrence Henry di Placito. One
Lawrence di Placito served as a second-class coxswain on the RAF Air Sea Rescue launches during the Second World War. He was born in Chertsey and attended Egham grammar school where he was a member of the cadet force. Upon leaving school in 1936 he…
Interview with Lawrence Henry di Placito. Two
Lawrence di Placito served as a second-class coxswain on the RAF Air Sea Rescue launches during the Second World War. Henry gives further details of his experiences in rescues, both successful and those with a tragic ending. He also tells of Ealing…
Interview with Iris Done
Upon leaving school until her marriage, Iris worked for London County Council. After her marriage she joined the Women's Auxiliary Air Force. She reported to Bridgenorth in June 1942 to be sworn in. After that, she went to Morecambe where she learned…
Interview with Betty Greenwood
Betty Greenwood was born in 1926 in Belton, Lancashire. She attended Princess Mary high school and was privately educated in Paris but returned due to the threat of war. Aged 16, she was offered various jobs but decided to join the Royal Observer…
Interview with Margaret Habberfield
Margaret Habberfield was born in 1923. At sixteen she joined the Royal Air Force after giving her age as eighteen. She began her six-week general training at Harrogate and was billeted with around 20 other girls. Margaret was then posted to RAF…
Interview with Pat and Frank Harris
Pat Harris’ brother John ‘Jack’ Harris joined the RAF straight from school as an apprentice. During the war he volunteered for aircrew and trained as a navigator. He was reported missing when Pat was serving in the Wrens. His death was finally…
Interview with Marian Hollier
Marion Hollier served as a wireless operator in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force from February 1944 to September 1946. Before the war she worked in a construction firm, The George Wimpey Company, which built aerodromes. She learned the Morse code in…
Interview with Joy Joy. One
Joy Joy was evacuated from Hull at the start of the war. She returned home for Christmas. She was again evacuated as the bombings began. She took responsibility for her younger sister although she was only six years old herself and she says that from…
Airmen and women
Over 50 airmen and Women's Auxiliary Air Force personnel in four rows (front row seated). On the reverse 'HT Ansell Front 3 from left'.
Cadet 1935-1945 Peter D Stevenson
Peter Stevenson's account of his service in the Officer Training Corps at Grantham and later in the Air Training Corps. Tells of his life in Grantham and the effect of the war on the town. Also his involvement post war in museums and projects to…
Interview with William Joseph Longhurst
William Longhurst served as an engine mechanic through the Second World War. He was a member of the Hackney Wick Air Defence Cadet Corps before volunteering to enlist in the RAF after his seventeenth birthday. Following basic training at Skegness,…
Interview with Margaret Sinclair Longmate
Margaret Longmate came from a family, from Edinburgh, with long links to the RAF. Her uncle had been in the Flying Corps in the First World War and various other friends and family joined the service during the Second World War. Therefore, it seemed…