Category: RAF Centenary Programme

This post contains details of front-line actions and mental health issues that some may find upsetting.

As a part of our RAF Centenary celebrations, the RAF Museum launched RAF Stories. This is an online project that collects and shares stories of people’s historical and contemporary connections to the RAF. It offers people from around the world the chance to discover, share and contribute to the story of the RAF in its 100th year, helping to preserve its amazing history for years to come.

To mark Mental Health Awareness Week, we have been sharing some of the inspiring stories of RAF personnel and their experiences with mental health. Through the RAF Stories project, many service personnel, as well as family and friends, have bravely shared with us their own experiences with mental health and how they have overcome their issues – demonstrating the importance of starting a dialogue around mental health and why no one should be ashamed to ask for help.

One of the stories to come out of the project so far is that of Michelle Partington. Michelle was the first female to work alongside the RAF Regiment as a Medical Support Officer, helping to make the RAF a more inclusive organisation.

However, despite all the training, Michelle said that nothing could have prepared for the extent of the injuries she went on to see during her three tours of Afghanistan. Michelle was medically discharged from the Air Force, and struggled to make therapy appointments, keep civilian work, and participate in normal life, as everyday sights and sounds triggered her anxiety.

It wasn’t until 2012 that Michelle was officially diagnosed with PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). One day, Michelle made the brave decision to reach out for help, and with the therapy and support she needed, she began to return to her former self. Since then, Michelle has set up her own mental health charity called Behind the Mask Mental Health Foundation. As well as this, she also delivers talks and workshops about her own experience, with the hope of helping others who struggle with their mental health.

Another story we would like to share is that of Paul Twitchell. Paul was a part of the Bomb Disposal Squad as a Weapons Technician Instructor on three separate tours of Iraq, where he and his colleagues witnessed horrific incidents.

After a long period of suffering from anxiety and a poor state of mental health, Paul was eventually diagnosed with PTSD, and he began on his road to recovery. In 2018, after his wife secretly applied for him in an attempt to help with his PTSD, Paul competed in the Invictus Games in Sydney winning the silver medal as part of the sitting volley ball team.

The final story we would like to share comes from actress Minnie Driver, about her father Charles Ronald Driver. Charles was a part of Bomber Command during the Second World War, but Minnie remembers how he rarely spoke about his experience.

This was unfortunately the case for many men returning from the war, and PTSD was not a recognised mental health condition until 1980, and instead they were considered to have LOMF – Lack of Moral Fibre.

Minnie recalls that her father threw his medals into the Thames because of survivors’ guilt. Thankfully, PTSD is now a recognised and support is offered openly to all those serving in the RAF.

By sharing the stories of Michelle, Paul and Minnie’s father, we hope that it will help others feel comfortable talking about any issues they may be going through, and to ask for the help and support they need, no matter what their mental health condition may be.

To hear more inspiring stories, go to www.rafstories.org where you will also find other stories about people’s experiences with the RAF. If you wish to share your own experience, download the ‘RAF Stories’ app for free.

RAF Stories is supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

To mark the 70th anniversary of the end of the 1948/1949 Berlin Airlift, the Royal Air Force Museum is recording memories from anyone who may have had any connection or involvement.

In June 1948, Stalin severed all road, rail and canal links with West Germany. The West responded to the blockade by organising an airlift of supplies to Berlin. By the start of 1949 5,290 RAF personnel and 160 WAAFs were required to maintain the airlift to Berlin.

The enormous success of the Allied airlift led to the Soviet decision to lift the blockade of Berlin on 12 May 1949. The airlift continued, however, until September to build up a reserve of supplies for Berlin in case the Soviets decided to reimpose the blockade.

We are currently looking for people with connections to the airlift to record for a special project at the museum.

One such person was Aldon Ferguson, President of the RAF Burtonwood Association, who shared with us the connection between RAF Burtonwood, the USAF and the Berlin Airlift.

RAF Burtonwood opened in April 1940 in time to supply Spitfires for the Battle of Britain. By 1942 the base was given to the Americans and in 1946 Burtonwood became the last American base in the UK to be handed back to the RAF.

After 2 years as a storage depot, the base was returned to the Americans in 1948 and once the Berlin Airlift began, Burtonwood housed and maintained the C-54 Skymaster aircraft which carried coal, flour and everything needed to keep the city of Berlin going.

The C-54 Skymaster required a full check every 200 flying hours. Once this time had been reached, they would be flown to Burtonwood and processed through various procedures which can be seen on the image below. Mechanics would often process up to nine aircraft each day.

By the time the Berlin Blockade had been lifted and the airlift had come to an end, RAF Burtonwood had completed over 1,054 200 hour maintenance schedules on C-54 aircraft.

If like Aldon, you have any personal, family or any other connection to the Berlin Airlift, please get in touch, we would love to hear from you. Please contact me on 01902 376237 or email me at jess.boydon@rafmuseum.org

If you would prefer to record your own story, you can download the ‘RAF Stories’ app which allows you to submit a recording through a smartphone or tablet.

This blog is dedicated with thanks to the Royal Air Force Museum American Foundation Learning Fund and Aldon Ferguson, President of the RAF Burtonwood Association.

You may remember that last year to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Royal Air Force’s foundation, our London site had a grand reopening after the successful completion of our RAF Centenary Transformation Project.

This multi-million pound project, which was 6 years in the making, significantly changed the whole layout of our London site, creating an amazing green ‘airfield’ in its centre that resembles the shape of RAF Hendon’s historic airfield. At the same time we opened three new magnificent exhibitions that enabled members of the public to explore the story of the RAF like never before.

Our first exhibition ‘RAF Story: The First 100 Years: 1918 – 2018’ was designed to be a perfect introduction to the RAF conveying its story, structure and ethos to each of our visitors. Its aim is to act as a primer for those of our visitors that have little or no knowledge of the RAF or its history.

The exhibition is divided into 5 parts. The first one is ‘Meet the RAF’ which establishes the image, spirit and values of the RAF family. The second section is ‘Attack’ which focuses on the history of reconnaissance and bombing missions as demonstrated by the legendary de Havilland 9A bomber which is on display in this part of the exhibition and which served in the First World War. Then our visitors enter the ‘Defends’ section with a proud Spitfire soaring high under the ceiling.

The fourth section is ‘Prepares’ which tells the story of how the RAF recruits and trains in personnel as well as the innovations that have served it during the first 100 years of its history. This section displays the strikingly bright-red Hawker Siddeley Gnat T1 and several interactives. Last but not the least comes ‘Supports’, a section that tells the story of the RAF’s humanitarian missions, including Search and Rescue. It is represented by bright-yellow Sea King helicopter from Search and Rescue Unit which was flown by HRH Prince William during his service.

Apart from incredible aircraft we also have a lot of life-sized figures of people who served, are currently serving or will be serving in the Royal Air Force. Here you can find the silhouettes of Lord Trenchard, the ‘Father of the RAF’, Flight Lieutenant Julia Gibson, the first RAF female pilot, Wing Commander Alan Page, who was a spokesman for a famous ‘Guinea Pig Club’, Squadron Leader Phillip Ulric Cross from Trinidad, who earned his DFC as a navigator with No 139 (Jamaica) Squadron during the Second World War.

These silhouettes convey the message that the RAF is not just about its machines, but more importantly its people, who represent through their actions the spirit and values of the RAF.

Our second exhibition ‘RAF: First to the Future’ gives our visitors a glimpse of the innovations and ground-breaking technologies that are vital for the RAF to be able to deliver on its missions.

Inside you can find gripping interactives that provide visitors of all ages with the opportunity to either take a seat as an RAF pilot or engineer and try out themselves a reconnaissance or attack mission. Alternatively you can protect the service from a malware attack or design and test a new aircraft for reach, speed or height.

Our third exhibition can be found in Hangar 6, and is titled ‘RAF in the Age of Uncertainty: 1980 – Today’. Here you will discover of the most agile and modern aircraft that have been in service since 1980: a BAe Harrier GR9A, an Eurofighter Typhoon, a Hawker Siddeley Buccaneer S2B, a Panavia Tornado GR1B, a Sepecat Jaguar GR.1.

This exhibition is designed to portray the era from the last years of the Cold War to today, a time when the world still hasn’t been at peace. In this age of uncertainty, the world has become even more turbulent – suffering from countless military conflicts, wars and revolutions.

That is why we have a timeline on the wall that reminds visitors of the major political and social events that had happened worldwide since 1980.

At the end of this timeline we have a huge screen that poses an important question ‘Is our world a safer place today then in 1980?’ Do you think it is safer now?

We are very proud of our new exhibitions and the fact that all three of them have been shortlisted in the Permanent Exhibition of the Year category of the Museums + Heritage Awards 2019.

We would like to congratulate our Exhibitions Team on this well-deserved recognition of their work and we invite readers of this blog to discover these outstanding exhibitions for themselves. We’re open daily from 10.00am. Admission is free.

As part of the RAF’s centenary celebrations, the RAF Museum has launched RAF Stories. This is an online collection of personal memories, capturing and sharing the inspirational stories connected to the Royal Air Force. To help celebrate the RAF Stories project, a series of talks will take place to highlight some of the most inspiring individuals that have been brought to light by the project so far. One of those amazing people is Ayla Holdom.

Ayla was based at RAF Chivenor, piloting the RAF Search and Rescue helicopter, the Westland Sea King. This helicopter was first developed in the late 1960s, before entering service for the RAF in 1978. In order to keep up with the pace of civilian aviation organisations, new technology was often bolted onto the Sea King, or simply carried along for the ride. But this didn’t mean the Sea King was dwindling. It was still going strong as Ayla explains:

“The Sea King was a fantastic Search and Rescue platform. We could fly in any weather over the sea. We could fly day or night over land as well. And we could put a paramedic down using our 240-foot winch to people in need. It was a robust helicopter. It was a good, American designed, metal helicopter that enjoyed being used properly. You didn’t need to be gentle enough, but she didn’t min being put into some tough spots as well.”

But Ayla and the rest of her team needed something robust like the Sea King to help them through the difficult conditions they would face when out on operation. The British weather can be ferocious, so for them, safety was the number one priority:

“The most difficult part of Search and Rescue was operating safely. Which is the absolute paramount to everything, it is safety first. Safety of your crew, safety of your aircraft, safety of the causality. Causality comes last to all of that. In order to be safe, you have to be very wary of everything not just riding in thinking you’re the hero and regardless of what’s in front of you. It’s assessing the situation, realising what rules you can work to, what your actual capabilities are to safely get to where you think you need to be. And really deciding when you don’t have capability and when you aren’t the best asset to a rescue. And that was the hardest part to learn.”

Ayla went on approximately 300 rescue missions with the Search and Rescue team, helping to save those who were in distress. During her time on the team, Ayla got the chance to work alongside HRH The Duke of Cambridge, or ‘William’, as they came to know him by:

“Working with Prince William was fantastic. It was an honour obviously. It was an honour to provide a place that he enjoyed working and to give him a job that he loved doing. You know, he was genuinely a good pilot. He was a good guy to have around and he was part of the team. Very quickly we got used to the fact that we had royalty working with us, which was nice. He wasn’t just Prince William, he was William.”

Ayla had an extensive career flying for Search and Rescue for 13 years, retiring from the RAF in 2015. This was the same year that Search and Rescue was handed over to the Department of Transport and the Coastguard, meaning it was no longer under military control. Although Ayla and her team found it upsetting to say goodbye, they understood that it was necessary. She now flies police helicopters, helping to search for criminals on the run.

In 2010, Ayla became the first openly transgender pilot in the British Armed Forces:

“I came out as transgender in 2010. And that came with all the trepidation and nerves you might expect. It was possibly the best environment I could imagine being in because your work environment is a family. The RAF is a family, you are very close knit. So, I absolutely wanted to be there, around people that I respected and loved to go through that.”

While the Royal Air Force was very supportive of Ayla’s transition because of the implementation of new policies and of others who had gone before her, Ayla still noticed some slight changes:

“Because I transitioned gender, I experienced the Air Force from a male perspective as well, and a female one. And I always assumed there was no such thing as misogyny, because we have a policy and there are rules in place to prevent any misogyny going on. But actually, it turned out that it was under the surface and went unseen. I definitely felt that after I transitioned, I certainly felt that there was a different standard expected of me. I had to work that much harder to equal some of my peers.”

Ayla had a really exciting career in the Royal Air Force, as well as the support from her friends in the RAF, allowing her to be herself, and to continue doing terrific work with the Search and Rescue team. Ayla proves that being yourself and having diversity in the RAF allows it to function at the highest standard possible. For me, it is great to see someone have so much passion for their job, and feel comfortable enough in that environment to be unapologetically themselves.

Ayla will be the third guest speaker for the RAF Stories series of talks on Thursday 8th November, at RAF Museum Midlands. To find out more information and to book your free ticket to Ayla’s talk, please visit the museum website.

You can also find Ayla’s and many other inspirational stories on the RAF Stories website.

RAF Stories is proudly supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The RAF Museum holds not only a magnificent collection of over 1 million small and large items related to the history of the Royal Air Force and aviation in general, but also an enormous selection of unique documents, which are of no less importance than the objects. This year to celebrate and commemorate the Centenary of the RAF, we decided to share some of these amazing records.

The RAF Museum teamed up with the Air Historical Branch and the award-wining publisher Extraordinary Editions to create the RAF Centenary Commemorative Anthology, a limited edition of 1,500 copies made by hand and bound in leather. This remarkable book contains a large range of the most important documents in the RAF history as well as photographs, paperwork, bills, maps, letters of remembrance, permissions to associate and ephemera. They all are re-produced in full size and colour and convey the whole 100-year history, the spirit and the ethos of the RAF.

In these pages, not only can you find The Smut’s Report and Trenchard’s Memorandum, which laid the foundations for the new air force, but thousands of other records. Some of them are related to celebrated heroes including Douglas Bader, Guy Gibson and the Dambusters. Some of them showcase amazing, heart-rending or amusing stories that manifest RAF airmen’s valour, heroism or luck. But more importantly, they immerse you in the everyday life, morale and values of the RAF throughout its 100-year history.

In this video Martin Morgan, the Managing Director of the Extraordinary Editions, reveals the story behind two documents related to Douglas Bader and re-produced in the book. The dashing fighter pilot had been promoted to Wing Commander and had 20 confirmed victories (and two shared) when he was forced to bail out of his Spitfire over enemy territory and was captured as a prisoner of war. These documents unveil some of the stories of his life as a POW and what a thorn he was in the enemy’s side.

Apart from the Centenary Edition, we have also created five different versions of the Anthology – Signed Editions. Each of them represents one of the iconic aircraft that served in the RAF the Spitfire, the Lancaster, the Harrier, the Vulcan and the Tornado, and is signed by three pilots or crew members. The page with their signatures also features their biographies and in-service photographs.

Each book also contains 20 extra pages with unique material on each aircraft, air diagrams, cockpit layouts, sectional drawings, handling notes and iconic images from the Museum’s art and photography collections.

We have also made 10 extra special copies that have a piece of the aircraft embedded in the cover as well as signed pages devoted to the featured aircraft. A piece of a real Spitfire, Harrier, Vulcan or Buccaneer alongside the signatures of its pilots and aircrew may end up on your bookshelf and become a constant reminder of the RAF Centenary.

A donation from all sales will be made to the RAF100 Appeal which supports the RAF Association, the RAF Charitable Trust, the RAF Benevolent Fund, the Museum and the Royal Air Force.

If you wish to purchase the RAF Commemorative Anthology, you may order a copy here. Don’t forget that you can also pay for your Anthology in easy instalments. For further information, please click on the link above or call Extraordinary Editions on 0207 267 4547.

As a part of the RAF’s Centenary celebrations, the RAF Museum has launched RAF Stories. This is an online collection of personal memories, capturing and sharing inspirational stories connected to the Royal Air Force.

To help celebrate the RAF Stories project, a series of talks will take place at the Museum’s Cosford site to highlight some of the most inspiring individuals that have been brought to light by the project so far.

One of these amazing people is Jackie Moggridge, whose story is told to us by her daughter, Candida Adkins.

Candida has shared with us the amazing story of her mother, Jackie, who flew as a pilot during the Second World War with the Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA), and later with the RAF Voluntary Reserves.

Jackie’s passion for flying began at a young age, when she saw a plane flying overhead in her hometown Pretoria, South Africa. Instantly, she wanted to become a pilot and began taking flying lessons, working towards her commercial pilot’s licence. Her brothers used to tease her about her petite frame, claiming that a woman wouldn’t be able to fly, to which Jackie thought, “I’ll show them!”

In order to learn, Jackie’s mother sent her to Aeronautical College in Oxford, as there weren’t any Flying Colleges in South Africa at that time. She had to study hard, particularly at maths, as she needed to prove that a woman could do it just as well as the men studying there.

Jackie had only been at College a year when the Second World War broke out. She desperately wanted to be a part of the action and to put her flying skills to good use, despite her mother’s calls for her to return to South Africa. Jackie initially tried to join the RAF but unfortunately, they wouldn’t allow female pilots at that time, so instead she joined the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF).

At first, Jackie’s role was as a Radar Operator, as Candida explains:

‘They were put in tiny little cubicles. All girls, in little cubicles. They were looking at a series of dots on a screen. And it wasn’t until the end of the week, when they’ve been doing reporting on the screen that some were kicked out and those that stayed were then told that they were doing a very secret operation, which was RADAR. So, my mother actually watched the Battle of Britain as little dots on a screen.’

As the war progressed, Jackie took a flight test and was accepted into the ATA to transport planes from factories to aerodromes around the country. While these planes were deemed safe to fly, the risk was still incredibly high. They often had no radio, no weapons, and no navigation systems, and there wasn’t a guarantee that everything worked. Initially, the ATA only took men, many of whom had been unsuccessful in their RAF application often due to age or injury, earning ATA the nickname ‘Ancient and Tired Airmen’. But as the war went on, there was a greater demand for pilots and so they began enlisting women. Jackie joined No. 15 Ferry Pool in Hamble, Southampton; an all-women’s pool.

Their pilots had to fly every and any type of plane that came out of the factories, from Lancasters to Spitfires, using only the information given to them in a small ring binder. Candida tells the story of her mother giving a lift to an airman in a new type of aircraft:

‘The weather was terrible and they were flying through this awful weather. And when they landed the commandant of the airfield came over and asked, ‘How was the flight?’ And the chap who’d been given a lift said ‘well, it was just dreadful weather, and I can’t believe not only was I flying back here by a woman but she was reading a book!’

And my mother went, ‘Oh no, I wasn’t reading a novel, these are my ATA notes, I hadn’t flown this type of plane before.’ He nearly threw up. But this is what it was really like, they hadn’t flown that plane before. They were just told that’s what you’re flying next.’

At the end of the war the ATA was disbanded, and although they were thrilled that war had ended. they were sad that their job was over. As Jackie herself reflected:

‘You’re out!’ they say, when war is won. ‘We know of all the work you’ve done.’ But men must work, and women weep. And the women say ‘yes’ like a lot of sheep.’

Most of the women who had flown went back to being housewives or women of the estate and, sadly, many never flew again. In 1940, Jackie was given the King’s Commendation for Services in the Air, and later joined the RAF Voluntary Reserves. Despite her work during the war, Jackie still encountered mistrust for being a female pilot. For example, on a trip to Burma delivering Spitfires:

‘When they all landed, they were stuck at the airport for about three hours because they didn’t believe that a woman had flown this Spitfire in, and they thought that a fourth pilot had just jumped out and done a runner. And they had to ring back to England to find out that it was actually true, and they were all stuck waiting while everything was checked. So yes, they did have some trouble. And you can imagine these countries couldn’t even imagine that there might be a woman pilot.’

Jackie continued to face obstacles when she wanted to become the first woman to break the sound barrier. After hearing of two other women trying to grab the title, Jackie pushed hard to be the first and grab the title for Britain. Sadly, the RAF and private aviation organisations were unwilling to allow her into a Jet, and so she was beaten to the title. Jackie did later get the chance to fly in a Meteor Jet, an experience which she loved, but it was a shame that she wasn’t allowed the opportunity sooner.

After five years of service in the Voluntary Reserves, Jackie was given her RAF wings on the 26th August 1953. After this, Jackie became the firsts female airline Captain, flying passengers all over the world. When she was young, Candida didn’t realise just how renowned her mother was, and what an important role she played during the war. Candida and her siblings saw her as a typical. embarrassing mum, who was away often for work. It was only as she grew older that Candida began to truly appreciate the work her mum did and what an important historical figure she is.

‘I realised that actually everyone was terribly interested in the life of ATA, the life of a woman pilot, and that she is so inspirational. She came from an ugly little girl who wasn’t particularly clever, at a school in Pretoria and just had a dream. She just got there with sheer will power and believing in her dream of anything is possible. And everyone should be able to do that.’

For me, Jackie’s story is truly inspirational, showing that determination can take you far. Despite the hurdles she faced, Jackie was able to live our her dream of being a pilot. It is also encouraging to see how much the RAF has changed over the 100 years. From initially not allowing women to enter the Royal Air Force to now having an open, non-discriminatory policy. I hope Jackie’s story encourages others to also pursue their dream careers.

Jackie’s story will be told by her daughter Candida for the RAF Stories series of talks on Thursday 4th October, at RAF Museum Midlands. To find out more information and to book your free ticket to Candida’s talk, please visit the museum website.

You can also find Jackie’s and many other inspirational stories on the RAF Stories website.

RAF Stories is proudly supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

This blog contains details of frontline injuries and mental heath issues which some may find upsetting.

As part of our RAF Centenary commemorations, the RAF Museum has launched RAF Stories.

This is an online collection of personal memories, capturing and sharing the inspirational stories connected to the Royal Air Force. To help celebrate the RAF Stories project, a series of talks will take place at our Cosford site to highlight some of the most inspiring individuals that have been brought to light by the project so far.

One of those amazing people is Michelle Partington.

Michelle first joined the Royal Air Force in 1991 at the age of 19 after hearing about the RAF at a school careers fair. Coming from a difficult background, Michelle wanted to use the opportunities provided by the RAF to become a medic and to help others in need. After being an administrator for five years, she finally had the chance to become a Medical Support Officer. However, before Michelle even went on her first tour she faced difficulties, as many believed that a woman would not be capable of working in such an environment. As Michelle reflects:

“It was a massive thing to get a female onto that and the main stress was before I went because of people saying, ‘oh you can’t do that, we can’t have a female, we can’t have this, we can’t have that’ and I’m like, ‘Why?’ You know, for I was pretty stubborn. I was like, ‘I want to do it, I want to prove that we can do it.’ To prove to others that actually it doesn’t matter what you’ve got between your legs, if you can do a job, you’re fit enough and agile enough and in the right frame of mind you can do anything you want…

And for the first week or so it was really, really hard because you have to prove yourself to the lads, cause they’ve you know, they’re going to have a little bit of stigma towards it as well. Saying, ‘Oh a woman can’t do this job.’ And there was a small amount of that but I proved myself quite early on. So then, that went and I just became one of the lads. For me I see that was the making of who I really am as I person.”

Michelle was fulfilling her dream career, and was stationed across the UK as well as completing tours in the Falklands and Bahrain, before going on to do three tours of Afghanistan. This is unfortunately where Michelle’s mental health began to deteriorate. Although training was the best it could have been, it was nothing compared to what she experienced in action.

Michelle explains her experience:

“The first tour, so much blast injuries, so so much blast injuries, but you got used it, you knew how to manage it, you got into a routine of dealing with them. When I returned to the UK, my friends and my fiancé at the time were saying to me, ‘you’re a bit quieter than you used to be, you’re a bit more withdrawn.’ I wasn’t going out so much. I didn’t realise, it was subtle what was happening. But I got to Brize for what was going to be my final tour. I felt sick at the thought of going back. I should have put my hand up and said I’m not ready, but I didn’t, and got out there and I was literally up here anxiety wise for most of it. Most of the casualties were more gunshot wounds than blasts and they were in places that were quite futile. So, we couldn’t save that many, so it was horrendous…”

“I actually was running off the helicopter by the end of that final tour thinking, you know what, if I got shot it wouldn’t matter. Because if I got shot, it meant that I could either go home early or I’d be dead and I could end the nightmare that I’d started to realise I was living in.”

Michelle was medically discharged from the Air Force, and struggled to make therapy appointments, keep civilian work, and to participate in normal life as everyday sights and sounds triggered her anxiety. It wasn’t until 2012 that Michelle was officially diagnosed withe PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). It was only when a letter came through from SSAFA informing her that they were going to take her off their books because of non-attendance that Michelle decided to reach out for help.

She began to receive therapy and the support she needed to help her return to her former self. It made her realise that it wasn’t a life ending moment for her and it gave her the confidence to carry on. It was through this support network that Michelle first heard about the Invictus Games. She began training in rowing and powerlifting, which she initially hated, becoming well known for having a sick bucket beside her at every training session. But she powered through and went on to compete at the Toronto Games in 2017, where she met Prince Harry.

Michelle recounts that moment:

“I knew I wasn’t going to get a gold medal or any medal, but I knew for me it was about self-improvement and getting our more and meeting people again, and I started to talk to people with amputations and realise actually they were having a great life and so my head switched which was great. All I wanted was the fire back in my belly…”

“I got to Toronto. They’d filmed a documentary about me for BBC One. I was due to compete in powerlifting. They had big screens all around and they started to show some of the documentary just as I was about to go on. It was about me talking to my mum about taking my own life and how she felt. And I just fell apart. Absolutely fell apart. And I wasn’t going to compete, well I didn’t even think about it, I was in bits. And then out of nowhere, Prince Harry came running over and gave me a massive hug. And that just brought me back into the room, and I just went out and smashed it!”

Since then, Michelle has set up her own help line service and mental health charity called ‘Behind the Mask Mental Health Foundation’. As well as this, she also delivers talks and workshops about her own experience, with the hope of helping others who struggle with their mental health. Michelle is currently training to row across the Atlantic in December 2019, knowing that by putting herself out there and giving herself a challenge, will help continue her positive road to recovery.

I find Michelle’s story very inspiring, and she has had to prove that women were capable of working on the front line, as well as overcoming difficulties with her mental health and getting the fire back in her belly.

Michelle’s story shows the importance of talking openly about mental health issues, particularly for returning service personnel, highlighting the benefits of having a support system in place. I hope that others can take comfort in Michelle’s story, and feel that they too can reach out for help if they are struggling.

Michelle will be the first guest speaker for the RAF Stories series of talks on Thursday 6th September, at RAF Museum Midlands. To find out more information and to book your free ticket to Michelle’s talk, please visit the museum website.

You can also find Michelle’s and many other inspirational stories on the RAF Stories website.

RAF Stories is proudly supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

During the Second World War, thousands of exiles from German-occupied Poland were keen to join the RAF and to fight back against the common enemy. The RAF gladly welcomed Polish airmen but didn’t let them fly operationally at first. The reason was because many of the Poles didn’t speak English.

However, the British soon realised that the Poles were excellent pilots, they had more combat experience and they employed superior tactics. As the Battle of Britain wore on, the exiles were accepted into RAF squadrons and two Polish fighter units, Nos. 302 and 303 Squadrons, were formed.

Once committed to action, the Poles flew and fought superbly. Polish fighter pilots destroyed 957 enemy aircraft with 58 men claiming five or more victories. Polish squadrons in Bomber Command and Coastal Command dropped a total of 14,708 tons of bombs and mines on enemy targets.

No. 303 (Polish) Squadron became the most successful Fighter Command unit in the Battle, shooting down 126 German machines in only 42 days. Czech Sergeant Josef Frantisek, also of ‘303’, was the top scoring pilot with 17 confirmed victories.

To celebrate and commemorate the exceptional valour demonstrated by Polish pilots in the Battle of Britain, the RAF Museum selected a Polish airman, Squadron Leader Franciszek Kornicki, to take his rightful place in our new permanent exhibition ‘RAF Stories: The First 100 Years: 1918-2018’.

Franciszek Kornicki like many of his other countrymen escaped to Britain from occupied Poland and continued to fight with the Polish Air Force in exile. He became the youngest Polish Squadron Leader in 1943 at the age of 26, due to his incredible skills as a Spitfire pilot and his quiet authority.

After the Second World War he remained in Britain, joined the RAF in 1951 and served for a further 20 years. Kornicki celebrated his 100th birthday in December 2016.

As part of our multi-million pound Centenary Transformation Project, we ran a poll to find ‘The People’s Spitfire Pilot’ for ‘RAF Stories’ courtesy of the Daily Telegraph. We asked 11 ‘ambassadors’ to select a renowned RAF spitfire pilot and to explain why they believed their candidate should become The People’s Spitfire Pilot. We were absolutely astonished by the response we received from people, and the number of votes the poll received.

Franciszek Kornicki was the runaway winner with 325,000 votes due to a social media campaign in Poland and among the Polish Community. Sir Douglas Bader came in in second place.

On 29 June 2018, the day of the RAF Museum London’s Royal Re-opening, Polish Ambassador Arkady Rzegocki unveiled the Museum’s monument to Franciszek Kornicki. The RAF Museum’s curator Peter Devitt explained to the press who the other pilots were in the poll and how impressive Kornicki’s victory was.

You can now meet Squadron Leader Kornicki in the ‘Defends’ section of our new permanent exhibition ‘RAF Stories: The First 100 Years: 1918-2018’ beneath our MK Vb Supermarine Spitfire .

We also celebrate the contribution made by Polish pilots in the Battle of Britain in an Online Exhibition as well as in the podcast “Repeat Please!”: Poles in the Battle of Britain’ which has been recorded in Polish and English .

Why not drop in and take a picture of yourself with ‘The People’s Spitfire Pilot’, Franciszek Kornicki and view our new magnificent exhibitions? Admission is free.

After a 6 year-long multi-million pound Centenary Transformation Project, the RAF Museum London finally re-opened its new exciting site to the public on Saturday, 30 June, the Armed Forces Day.

The transformation was challenging and thrilling at the same time. We knew that we needed to grow and progress to stay relevant and compelling for our audiences who had become younger and more diverse.

The First Phase of the transformation was delivered in 2014 with the opening of the award-winning First World War in the Air exhibition in Hangar 2. The exhibition explores the pioneering years of British aviation and the very birth of the Royal Air Force.

The RAF Centenary Project’s Second and the Third Phases were delivered at the same time on 30 June 2018. These Phases constituted the building of three new exciting exhibitions and the complete redevelopment of the Museum site, incorporating a newly grassed ‘airfield’ in its centre.

On 30 June, we hosted an exciting event celebrating Armed Forces Day UK as well as the final unveiling of our new exhibitions. Our first visitors were treated with a rip-roaring concert of much-loved songs from The Jive Aces, North London Military Wives Choir, Polka Dot Dolls and RAF Halton‘s Band.

The stage was positioned on our grassed ‘airfield’ at the centre of our site which resembles the shape of Hendon airfield. This area has been specifically designed for picnicking and sunbathing both made all the more comfortable by resting on our beautiful parachute bean-bags, created in collaboration with local community. We were delighted to see our visitors relaxing on them and enjoying the sunshine and a vibrant music.

Our first new exhibition ‘RAF Stories: The First 100 Years: 1918 – 2018’ in Hangar 1 was designed to make a full and detailed introduction of the RAF to those of our visitors who may not be very knowledgeable as to what the RAF is and what it does.

This exhibition features an array of amazing personal stories from RAF servicemen and women in the form of the silhouettes, a collection of unique objects, which have never been on the display before, video and the RAF’s iconic aircraft. Each aircraft on display in this area has a mini-version next to it which are proving to be extremely popular among our younger visitors.

This exhibition also offers the unique opportunity for the visitors to explore and interact with many of the amazing objects in our collection. Guests highly appreciated the opportunity to try on the RAF uniform, to listen to the personal experiences of RAF personnel through our interactives and to test our Flying Training and Multitasking Simulators.

We have also noticed that the visitors have devoted a lot of time to planning aerial battles during the Battle of Britain on our WAAF plotting table, exploring how jet engines work as part of our Sir Frank Whittle display and generally having a lot of fun.

For the re-opening event, we arranged a photo booth in Hangar 1, where our visitors could pose for the pictures in vintage RAF uniform going back to 100 years ago.

Our second new exhibition, ‘RAF: First to the Future’, also in Hangar 1, was designed to tell the story of how the constant development of cutting-edge technology has been paramount to the success of the RAF . We knew that this area would be extremely appealing for the teenagers and young adults, as it offers the opportunity to try out being intelligent agent gathering information or a RAF engineer designing the aircraft of the future.

We were delighted to discover how long our young visitors would stay in the new exhibition designing their own aircraft and testing them, undertaking tasks based on real-life missions, exploring topics of interest at our Debate Table.

Our third new exhibition ‘The RAF in the Age of Uncertainty: 1980 – Today’ in Hangar 6 has a dramatic display and explores the recent history of the RAF from 1980.

Alongside the terrific aircraft and unique objects related to the RAF operations in Iraq or Afghanistan, the exhibition also includes the interactive opportunities. The ‘Age of Uncertainty’ is represented as a timeline connecting the RAF operations to the other major world events during this period – assisting our audience in linking events to the history of the RAF.

Visitors also paid a lot of attention to the large screen collecting the opinions on the question, has the world become a safer place over the last 40 years!

Our Armed Forces Day Festival went amazingly well and re-enforced the fact that 6 years of hard work and toil have created an exciting and magnificent space where visitors of all ages and backgrounds now have an endless opportunity to explore, interact and have fun.

Since our re-opening we have received a tremendous amount of feedback from visitors stating how amazed and delighted they are with our new site and that it now provides families with an even more incredible opportunity to have an unforgettable day out.

So why not come for a flying visit and end up staying the day? We look forward to welcoming you in the near future…and don’t forget admission to our London site is free of charge.

Fifty years after it was founded, an adventure and completely new experience awaits visitors to the RAF Museum, London when it re-opened its doors to the public on ‘Armed Forces Day’.

The result of a major fundraising campaign, considerable planning and hard work by all concerned in order to ensure that the Museum can be fit for purpose and better display aircraft and artefacts covering the first one-hundred years of the Royal Air Force, the now transformed RAF Museum London will make substantive use of 21st century technology in order to provide younger visitors with a hands-on experience learning adventure of the RAF past, present and future.

The visible transformation of the RAF Museum London includes a major new extension, revamping of buildings, restaurants and facilities and landscaping together with provision of three new very innovative galleries designed to show Royal Air Force history and achievement, what the Force is today and importantly, a glimpse of what it plans to be tomorrow.

An important legacy from the 50th anniversary of the Royal Air Force back in 1968, the RAF Museum Hendon first opened its doors to the public in November 1972. Now, 100 years after the RAF was founded in 1918, the former RAF Hendon airfield site which since the Museum was established there has grown organically from what had been a few aircraft hangars left behind from the period that Hendon was a very active RAF station, to one that following the new investment can claim to represent one hundred years of the Royal Air Force in all its glory.

Along with its sister Museum at RAF Cosford, the RAF Museum London has long provided visitors not only with a formidable collection of aircraft, weapons, artefacts including copious amounts of technical equipment used by the RAF throughout its history, the people who flew and those that supported them, the all-important engineering and technical skills required, training, transport, Force Protection together with an understanding of the many other logistical and other support elements required. Importantly, the RAF Museum emphasises not only on the aircraft and people but also the many deployments of the Royal Air Force in action.

Younger visitors to this now very modern and fit for purpose Museum and who might one day wish to be a part of the RAF can look forward to a fully accessible, hands-on experience and learning adventure – one that modern day visitors to museums as important as this have come to expect them to provide. The importance to the RAF of the Air Cadets and University Air Squadrons over the years is very much in evidence too and there is plenty of emphasis on STEM, Skills and engineering to be found in various parts of the Museum.

Following an investment in the region of £23 million of which £4.89 million has come from a Heritage Lottery Fund award and the rest from hard work on the part of the Trustees and organisers, grants and gifts from the public, there has been significant support from industry that combined has enabled transformation of the RAF Museum London to take place.

Over the past three years it has been a great pleasure for me to observe how the Trustees of the RAF Museum, led by Air Chief Marshal Sir Glenn Torpy, together and the CEO of the RAF Museum, Maggie Appleton and her very hard working staff, have put the remarkable change process together. What they have achieved in a relatively short period of time whilst the Museum remained open to the public has been remarkable.

BAE Systems was the Museum’s founding sponsor when the plan was still on the drawing board back in 2014 and suffice to say that without the significant support that this company provided along with Northrop Grumman, MBDA, Rolls-Royce, World Fuel Services and others, none of this would have been possible in such a short period of time.

As mentioned above, substantial financial support was provided from the Heritage Lottery Fund and also from the State of Kuwait and for which the RAF Museum are I know very appreciative. Neither should we ignore the support provided through the HM Treasury LIBOR funding and the MOD support together with that from a large number of trusts and foundations and public donations. Entry to the RAF Museum continues to be free.

Over the past three years the RAF Museum London site has been transformed into a world-class national museum, one that can from within its permanent and expanded aircraft exhibition and substantial investment made in the innovative new galleries, provide visitors with the inspirational story and narrative that properly describes the RAF yesterday, today and what it will no doubt be tomorrow.

The RAF Museum’s purpose has always been to tell the story of the Royal Air Force through its people, through its world-class collections of aircraft at Hendon and at the sister location on the RAF Cosford base in Shropshire. Here visitors have been able to learn about policy, politics and power but also hear stories from people that have shaped and contributed to the RAF’s hundred year achievement. The RAF Museum has always been people-focused strategy and designed to appeal not just to those that have served but also to the much wider audience from within whom might well be found the air power engineers and scientists that the nation and the Royal Air Force need for the future.

Telling the story of the first one hundred years of the world’s first independent Air Force and of how this has played such a significant role in the development of air power and the character of modern warfare is no easy task. Having watched the process in build and seen for myself complete with the new landscaping that far better reflects the historic RAF Hendon airfield as it was, having watched everything develop including new exhibitions and re-purposed historic buildings, I am left in no doubt that visitors to the ‘new’ RAF Museum will enjoy what they are able to see, feel, learn and imagine what it was like to be in the RAF and how the Force has developed through the past one hundred years.

From the first flimsy biplanes flown by members of the Royal Flying Corps and that battled it out over the trenches of Flanders in the Great War, to the RAF Spitfire, Hurricane and Lancaster Bomber aircraft that played such a significant role in World-War 2, through the English Electric Lightning, Phantom and Jaguar capability during the ‘Cold War’ and the Tornado GR4, Typhoon FGR4 capability that continue to be deployed today and not forgetting of course, the F-35 ‘B’ Lightning capability that is just entering service with the Royal Air Force at RAF Marham, what all these aircraft and the people involved have achieved and continue to achieve as they deploy and continue to conduct front-line operations with our NATO and other allies, will be there for all to see and better understand.

The primary role of the RAF Museum is not only to show and explore past RAF history from the beginnings to the present day and to look to the future but also to demonstrate the many and vitally important RAF trades and the people without whose loyalty, hard work and dedication behind the scenes no aircraft could ever fly.

Importantly, much emphasis has been placed to ensure that past assumptions that museums such as this are merely about reflecting the past have been completely dispelled at the new RAF Museum by the ability it now has to offer so many tantalising glimpses of what the RAF may be in the future.
Telling the story of the first one hundred years of Royal Air Force history is no easy task and the investment that has been put in is not just about new buildings, expansion and, dare I say with tongue in cheek, much needed landscaping, but also about presentation and a narrative that leads visitors through a range of interactive exhibits, personal and inspirational stories and accounts from those that have been a part of the RAF’s history including pilots, crews, families and that at the same time as they garner through the past experience of the RAF enables visitors to join in the discussion to develop a future vision.

The three new innovative galleries presented to visitors comprise:

RAF Stories: The First Hundred Years – this has been designed to reflect the history of the Royal Air Force from its creation in 1918. The gallery captures the very many roles undertaken by the RAF across its first 100 years including momentous events of the Second World War and Cold War.
The gallery also covers significant advances in technology and aircraft design through that time span and that underpin the Royal Air Force capability whilst explaining the range of its operational responsibilities, from homeland defence to that of our dependent territories right through to expeditionary operations in partnership with other nations and NATO.

RAF – First to the Future – this gallery invites visitors to explore the work of today’s Royal Air Force and of how the service is preparing for the future. The gallery is designed to connect visitors to the current and future Royal Air Force and to provide a counterpoint to the first 100 years of its history.

Importantly, this exhibition is designed to focus on the people and skills behind the technology in order to help young people connect past and present RAF and to be inspired to join the next generation of the Royal Air Force. Displays here focus on new inventions and technology, evolving as the world changes and as the Royal Air Force has and will respond within its second century. Somewhere in all this may well be found references to another first achieved by the RAF Black Arrows aerobatics team which was formed in 1956 using Hawker Hunter jets, the RAF Red Arrows Aerobatics Team that followed them flying first the Folland Gnat and since 1979, BAE Systems Hawk jets.

The RAF in an Age of Uncertainty – the gallery here is designed to tell the story of Royal Air Force operation and deployment since the liberation of the Falkland Islands in 1982, the Cold War, Operation DESERT STORM in Iraq, the liberation of Kuwait together with operations in the Balkans, Afghanistan and Libya and presumably also, the ongoing OP, Shader deployment in RAF Akrotiri over Iraq and Syria today.

The period involved here covers considerable developments in the invention and application of new technologies in weapons and weapons delivery advances, in communication and networks, ISTAR, (Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance) GPS and other capabilities many of which are still in use by the RAF and global partners within the NATO alliance today.

As a final comment it is worth noting that the RAF Museum team in London are also engaging local people to the north London site with a series of ‘Historic Hendon’ projects. In addition and as was equally well demonstrated in respect of its importance and a major element of the RAF Cosford Air Show two weeks ago, a new Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths (STEM) and Heritage programme is designed to inspire people of all ages to get hands-on with STEM activities, to increase engagement with and learning from the RAF Museum’s collections and stories and also to encourage young people into vital STEM careers.

Meanwhile, it is intended that the RAF Museum’s physical transformation will be complemented by RAF Stories Online, a new digital sharing project aimed at promoting conversation with a global audience and also to help connect people everywhere to the RAF story.

As a partner in RAF100, the RAF Museum’s desire to fulfil the RAF’s together with its own ambition to Inspire sits front and centre alongside the clear achievement of Commemorating the service’s first 100 years, celebrating the spirit and values of the people who have contributed to the RAF story and inspiring those who may be part of the Royal Air Force story of tomorrow.

The transformation of the Hendon site has gone a very long way to establishing the RAF Museum today as being one of the UK’s great cultural organisations. I have been left in no doubt that this is only the beginning!

In last week’s blog we revealed several amazing stories about heroines who served in the RAF. My blog this week is devoted to four incredible men, who either influenced or recorded the history of the RAF.

Our first story focuses upon Flight Lieutenant Paul Brickhill, whose story can also be viewed in the Meet the RAF section of our ‘RAF Stories’ exhibition.

Born in Australia in 1916, Paul Chester Brickhill volunteered as a member of the Royal Australian Air Force in January 1941. In March 1943 while flying his Spitfire for the RAF he was shot down and eventually imprisoned in Stalag Luft III, the ‘escape-proof’ camp located at Sagan in Silesia.

In Stalag Luft III, Brickhill was recruited by the ‘X’ Organisation, led by ‘Big X’, Squadron Leader Roger Bushell, who masterminded the mass break-out from the camp that later became known as ‘The Great Escape’. As Brickhill suffered from claustrophobia, he couldn’t become one of the escapees. Instead he became the historian of this epic escape.

On the night 24/25 March 1944, 76 prisoners escaped the camp. 73 of them were recaptured within a few days and 50 of them were murdered by Gestapo. Only three of the initial escapees successfully reached Britain.

In 1950, Brickhill published his book ‘The Great Escape’ which immediately captured the British public’s imagination. This was followed in 1951, by his book ‘The Dam Busters’, and four years later, he finished ‘Reach for the Sky’, the biography of Group Captain Sir Douglas Bader. In 1963, a thrilling Hollywood film brought the inspirational story of the Great Escape to a worldwide audience.

His books, and the iconic feature films they inspired, defined the public’s understanding of the RAF after the Second World War and have been chosen for display at our London site alongside his own story.

Our second story is about Squadron Leader Philip Louis Ulric Cross.

Philip Louis Ulric Cross was born in 1917 in Trinidad. After the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, and the Fall of France, the young Trinidadian decided to sign up. As he said: ‘The world was drowning in fascism and America was not yet in the war, so I decided to do something about it and volunteered to fight in the RAF.’

Cross arrived in Britain in November 1941 and trained to be a Navigator for a year. He was posted to No. 139 (Jamaica) Squadron which was equipped with bombers paid for by the people of Jamaica.

As an excellent Navigator, Pilot Officer Cross was selected to join the elite Pathfinder Force, which had the difficult, dangerous and vital task of identifying and marking targets for bombing raids. Cross successfully completed 80 high-risk operations over Germany and occupied France and twice refused to be rested.

He was promoted to Flying Officer and in June 1944 awarded with the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC). In 1945, he received the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) in recognition of his ‘fine example of keenness and devotion to duty’ and his ‘exceptional navigational ability’.

Ulric Cross’s story is told in the Attack section of ‘RAF Stories’ – a perfect tribute to a brilliant and fearless specialist who completed numerous dangerous missions to ensure the success and eventual victory of the Allied Forces.

Our third story focuses on one of the most memorable events in the Battle of Britain. Flight Lieutenant Raymond Towers Holmes’ story is told in the Defence section of RAF Stories.

Ray Holmes joined the RAF Volunteer Reserve as a part-time flyer in 1937 before becoming a member of No. 504 Squadron in June 1940.

On 15 September 1940, No. 504 Squadron, which was based at RAF Hendon at the time, was called upon to intercept enemy bombers heading towards Central London. Sergeant Holmes leapt from a bath to take his place in his Hurricane fighter aircraft.

Holmes saw a Dornier on fire aiming for Buckingham Palace and rammed it with his Hurricane without hesitation. His Hurricane’s wing cut through the Dornier’s rear fuselage. The bomber broke up and crashed just before Victoria Station while Holmes’ Hurricane smashed into Buckingham Palace Road at the speed of 400 miles an hour. Holmes successfully bailed out of his aircraft landing in a dustbin in Pimlico without any serious injury.

The episode was witnessed by thousands of astonished Londoners and in the process Holmes became a national celebrity due to his bravery. He was invited onto BBC Radio for an interview and enjoyed an audience with the King and Queen.

Our fourth story is about legendary character, Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Edward Lawrence, who gained international fame as Lawrence of Arabia. His breath-taking story is told in the Defence section of our ‘RAF Stories’ exhibition.

Born in 1888, Lawrence was an archaeologist, military officer and diplomat. Most of his activity was based in the Middle East and related to intelligence and diplomatic missions during the First World War. However, he joined the RAF twice, both times under different pseudonyms. During these periods, he helped with the development of high-speed launches that were designed to recover airmen forced down into the sea.

As a talented author able to vividly describe all the breadth and variety of his activity, Lawrence had become famous after publishing a number of successful books. In ‘The Mint’, he talks about his life in the RAF.

Visitors will be able to meet his silhouette and view the sea-plane tender that he designed just by the Mk Vb Spitfire that is on display in RAF Stories at our London site.

All these incredible stories about four remarkable men are part of our brand-new exhibition ‘RAF Stories: The First 100 years, 1918-2018’ which opens to the public in June 30, the Armed Forces Day. If you have enjoyed this blog, please visit our exhibition to learn more about these great men.

The RAF museum has an incredible collection of nearly 2 millions objects reflecting the history of the RAF ranging from a small can of webbing paste to two gigantic Avro Vulcans.

We are very proud of our collection; however, we perfectly understand that the RAF is not just its objects but its people – the people who make the RAF’s achievements possible. Their personal stories are the true history of the RAF and these stories provide the real basis for our exhibitions.

In this blog I would like to reveal four stories about remarkable women, whose lives are strongly connected to the RAF and who are represented in our ‘RAF Stories: The First 100 Years 1918-2018’ exhibition.

Our first story is about Noor Inayat Khan, a beautiful young woman born into the family of a Sufi Muslim teacher and raised both in London and Paris. Noor was a gentle and sensitive lady, she was a pacifist and wrote children stories. But with the outbreak of the Second World War Noor couldn’t stay un-involved. In 1940, after the German invasion to France, she escaped to London and joined the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force. In 1942, she was recruited as a secret agent and in 1943 became the first woman radio operator dropped behind the enemy lines where she operated assisting the Parisian Resistance.

The average life expectancy of the radio operator at that time was 6 weeks. Noor managed to last three months carrying out her crucial work. Even when her circuit collapsed, and London ordered her to return, she refused to leave her French comrades. Noor continued to work demonstrating incredible heroism while remaining a vital intelligence link between London and Paris.

On 13 October 1943 Noor was betrayed, captured, interrogated and tortured. Despite the torture she refused to provide any information, not even her real name, and made two attempts to escape. As a result she was kept in chains in solitary confinement, but her spirit couldn’t be broken. She was shot on 13 September 1944 at Dachau concentration camp. Her last word was ‘Liberté’.

On 5 April 1949 she became the first Muslim woman awarded with the George Cross posthumously for her ‘most conspicuous courage, both moral and physical over a period of more than 12 months’.

The Museum is proud to tell Noor’s story in our ‘Meet the RAF’ exhibition. Personally I feel it is the perfect tribute to her fearlessness, strong spirit and valour and gives a great example of someone who embodies the best of the RAF.

My second story focuses upon Assistant Section Officer Joan Daphne Mary Pearson, who joined the WAAF in 1939. Her story is represented in the Support section of the ‘RAF Stories’ exhibition.

On 31 May 1940, at 1.15am an Avro Anson of No 500 Squadron crashed near RAF Detling, where Daphne Pearson was serving as a Corporal in the medical section. One of the bombs in the Avro Anson exploded killing the wireless operator and injuring the pilot and the other two crew members.

The explosion was very loud, and Daphne rushed to the crash site as soon as she heard it. She climbed into the wreckage of burning Anson, revived the stunned Flying Officer David Bond, releasing his parachute harness, and helped him to get clear.

Then she dragged him 27 metres away from the burning aircraft and administered first aid. Although he was in great pain, Bond gasped: ‘Go – full tanks and bombs’. When another bomb in the Anson, a 120lb, exploded, Daphne shielded the injured man with her body, saving him from the blast and shrapnel.

She stayed with the pilot until a stretcher party appeared. Then she hurried back to the burning wreck to find the fourth crew member, who was unfortunately dead. Unable to do any more, she went to the station sick bay, where she tended the wounds of the other two crew members until 3.00am. Five hours later, Pearson reported for duty as usual.

Corporal Pearson was awarded the Empire Gallantry Medal on 19 July 1940 and was commissioned as an officer shortly afterwards. She was the first woman to be decorated for bravery in the Second World War and her heroism was mentioned in Parliament by Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

In 1941, her medal was replaced by a George Cross, Pearson becoming the first woman to receive the new honour.

Daphne Pearson was a modest person and after the incident she wrote to her mother saying:

“My name has been sent to the King…but I hope nothing will be done about it. When I read of the things our boys did at Dunkirk my little bit is nothing at all.”

Our RAF Stories exhibition features Daphne’s remarkable story in the Support section as it gives us a perfect example of how unprecedented courage and self-sacrifice protects and preserves human life.

My third story is about three heroic WAAF telecommunications operators, Sergeant Joan ‘Elizabeth’ Mortimer, Corporal Elspeth Henderson, Sergeant Helen Turner. They joined the RAF in different years, from 1930 to 1940, but remained at their posts during heavy German bombing of their base, RAF Biggin Hill, in late August 1940.

Although their fighter station was badly damaged, they calmly continued to receive and pass on vital signals necessary for RAF squadrons. They were all awarded the Military Medal for their bravery.

Their story is featured in our Defence section illustrating strength in the face of danger and the iron will necessary to remain on duty even while the bombs are exploding around.

Our fourth story focuses upon Corporal Lauren Smith, the great-granddaughter of a member of the WAAF during the Second World War. Lauren joined the RAF in 2009 and her story is represented in our exhibition Meet the RAF with a silhouette.

Lauren’s great-grandmother Joyce Edwards was a former Women Auxiliary Air Force cook. Her husband, John Madge, served in Bomber Command as a Rear Gunner in Lancasters sacrificing his life in 1944.

When her great-granddaughter joined the RAF, Joyce was delighted.

Sadly during Smith’s basic training her great-grandmother died suddenly, compelling her to decide whether to finish the course or to go to her great-grandmother’s funeral and be back-flighted. In one of the most difficult decisions of her life Lauren stayed and completed the course.

At her passing-out parade Lauren was proudly carrying Joyce’s photograph in her tunic pocket. As she says, in a video that can be seen in our exhibition, ‘I was thinking of Joyce and she was with me throughout my passing-out parade’.

Recently Lauren received the priceless opportunity to sit in the Rear Gunner seat of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight’s Lancaster, the same position as her great-grandfather once sat in his aircraft.

She confessed: ‘It was such a privilege and honour to sit there, I must say. I felt a little emotional climbing into that seat, realising how daunting it must have been for him and the crew during the war.’

Each of these extraordinary women have very different stories. Stories that are woven throughout each of our new exhibitions to inspire young women who visit our London site.

In our next blog we will examine some of the great men that are represented in our new exhibitions.

In the meantime, if you have been inspired by this blog and would like to learn more about the women featured in it their stories will be on display from 30 June when we will re-open our London site to the public. We look forward to welcoming you then.

Last week, to celebrate the arrival of London’s two new Gate Guardians, we told you the story of Ray Holmes and his Hawker Hurricane which saved the day and Buckingham Palace on 15 September 1940.

Our second Gate Guardian is a Supermarine Spitfire MK XVI liveried in colours of 601 Squadron. The Squadron that was based at our London site when it was Hendon airfield. The Squadron was stationed here from 1927 to 1939 and from 1946 to 1949.

601 Squadron was initially called the ‘Millionaires Squadron’ as it was formed on 14 October 1925 from a group of aristocratic and very ‘well-heeled’ young men. Most of them could afford to have their own aircraft and had previously been amateur pilots.

The idea to create a new Reserve (Auxiliary) Squadron of the RAF came to its first Commanding Officer Lord Edward Arthur ‘Ned’ Grosvenor at White’s Gentlemen Club. The legend is that Lord Grosvenor would test his potential recruits by plying them with alcohol to see if they would demonstrate some inappropriate behaviour while under the influence. Not unsurprisingly, many of them passed with flying colours.

However, the young millionaires didn’t pay much attention to the strict military discipline anyway. It was their tradition to line their uniform and helmet with silk, wear blue ties instead of black ones and to use bright red socks. To reflect this, when fully opened, the table cloths in our new restaurant Claude’s will be decorated with red socks and a history of 601 Squadron.

Soon after its foundation, from 1927 and until the beginning of the Second World War in 1939, 601 Squadron was based on Hendon airfield. The first aircraft squadron members flew was the Avro 504, a two-seat training aircraft renowned for its stability and reliability. You can see one in our the First World War in the Air exhibition in London, In Hangar 2.

Young pilots considered the aircraft as ‘generally idiot-proof’ and to be so safe that ‘it could only barely kill you’. One of the regular competitions amongst these daring young men was the challenge for a pilot to take off in the rear cockpit, and retrieve a handkerchief from the front cockpit, before landing with it in their pocket – all in the fastest possible time.

As many of the squadron members were very wealthy men, they could afford to make some alterations to their aircraft. For example, Sir Dermot Boyle, who was then just a Flight Lieutenant, altered his Avro 504 to use a Lynx-Avro engine. One of the best pilots in the RAF, he often put on a show for his Squadron, letting the tail of the Lynx-Avro rise off the ground until the propeller was cutting the grass during take-off.

With the outbreak of the war, 601 Squadron became a day fighter unit in 1940 and flew both the Hawker Hurricane and the Supermarine Spitfire. At that time the Squadron was as cosmopolitan as all other squadrons, as new members were recruited from all the parts of the Commonwealth to cover casualties and promotions.

One of the more famous squadron members was Sir John William Maxwell ‘Max’ Aitken, a Second Baronet, who flew with 601 Squadron from 1936 – 1940. Initially a Pilot Officer, he rose to Commanding Officer in June 1940, before leaving the Squadron. A British Flying Ace with 16 victories, he earned the Distinguished Flying Cross in 1940 and Distinguished Service order in 1942 and later oversaw RAF operations in the Middle East and RAF Coastal Command, rising to the eventual rank of Group Captain.

After the Second World War 601 Squadron returned to RAF Hendon again for a short period from 1946 – 1949.

In 1946, it was reformed as a Fighter Squadron within the Auxiliary Air Force, and was initially equipped with the Spitfire, followed by the jet-powered De Havilland Vampire F3. One of the De Havilland Vampires of 601 Squadron is exhibited at our Historic Hangars (Hangar 3) at our London site. This aircraft served at North Weald RAF base, where 601 Squadron was moved to in 1949, after leaving RAF Hendon. You can still see the evidence of its service, with the iconic ‘Flying Sword’ insignia still featured on the nose of the aircraft. The symbol of 601 Squadron was designed by Lord Grosvenor and represented the scarlet ‘Sword of London piercing a pilot’s wings’.

In 1957, due to the defence budget cuts, 601 Squadron, alongside all other Auxiliary Air Force Squadrons, was officially disbanded. The last aircraft flown by the Squadron was a Gloster Meteor F8, the first British jet fighter and the only jet fighter used during the Second World War. One of these fascinating aircraft is also displayed in Historic Hangars (Hangar 3) at our London site.

601 Squadron flew several types of Spitfire aircraft, including Supermarine Spitfire LF XVIE. One such aircraft is also in our collection in Historic Hangars as part of the Spitfire Experience. For a small charge any visitor can climb inside its cockpit and get a feel for what was it like to pilot this magnificent aircraft.

Another type is the Supermarine Spitfire MK XVI, the same as our Gate Guardian which welcomes all our visitors to our London site and commemorates the famous residents of RAF Hendon airfield – the ‘Millionaires Squadron’.

If you would like to learn more about 601 Squadron we would recommend reading ‘The Millionaires’ Squadron : The Remarkable Story of 601 Squadron and the Flying Sword’ by Tom Moulson, available from Pen and Sword Books.

This week we have welcomed back to our London site our amazing Gate Guardians, as part of London’s RAF Centenary Transformation Programme. If you visited us before 2016 you may remember the Hawker Hurricane MK 1 and the Supermarine Spitfire MK XVI we had as the Gate Guardians on our London site. Now they both are back after refurbishment, freshly painted and ready to welcome all our visitors as they arrive at our site.

Both of our Gate Guardians are the replicas of the iconic aircraft whose glorious history reflects the rich and diverse story of the RAF Hendon, formerly one of the U.K’s oldest airfields, and now the home of our London site.

Our Supermarine Spitfire MK XVI is liveried in the colours of No. 601 Squadron which was based at RAF Hendon from 1927 to 1939 and from 1946 to 1949. The Hawker Hurricane MK 1 is decorated in the colours of No 504 Squadron as flown from RAF Hendon by Sergeant Ray Holmes during the summer of 1940, the Battle of Britain. In this blog post, we would like to tell you Ray Holmes’ fascinating and amazing story.

Raymond Towers Holmes was born in 20 August 1914 in Merseyside and worked as a news reporter by trade. In 1937, he became a part-time flyer in the RAF Volunteer Reserve. With the outbreak of the Second World War Ray was called up and joined No 504 Squadron in June 1940.

On Sunday 15 September 1940, in the morning, 26-year-old Sergeant Ray Holmes was taking a bath when a RADAR station on the south coast picked up a sudden activity. One hundred Dornier bombers, with a heavy fighter escort appeared on the screens crossing the English Channel, heading to London. As the telephone rang calling the Squadron at readiness, Ray had time only to pull on his blue sport shirt and the uniform trousers and run to his car. Less than five minutes after the alert No 504 Squadron was airborne.

For Sergeant Holmes this was his first air combat and he was thrilled and excited that he was flying his Hawker Hurricane MK1 right to the Battle. While attacking his first Dornier, he noticed another enemy aircraft, also Dornier, on fire heading directly to Buckingham Palace.

As his ammunition had run out, he understood that there was only one thing that he could do to prevent catastrophe, even though it would be a suicidal mission. As Ray said himself: “His aeroplane looked so flimsy, I didn’t think of it as solid and substantial. I just went on and hit it for six”.

His Hurricane rammed the Dornier, cutting through its rear fuselage, breaking the bomber up right over the Hyde Park Corner in a plain sight of hundreds of citizens. The Dornier’s forward fuselage section crashed near Victoria Station, the tail landed on a rooftop in the Vauxhall Bridge Road. Two of the five crew members survived and were captured.

Ray Holmes lost control over his Hurricane and had to bale out near Pimlico. He landed without serious injuries right into an open dustbin in a garden on Hugh Street. Seeing two young ladies in the neighbourhood garden looking at him he leapt the fence and kissed them both.

His Hurricane smashed into Buckingham Palace Road at the speed of 400 miles an hour. So, when Sergeant Holmes arrived to look at his aircraft, straight after his landing, there wasn’t much left. It was just a pile of scattered scrap metal smoking in hole in the ground. He picked up a small piece of its Merlin engine as a souvenir, before he was pulled to the Orange Brewery on Pimlico Road for some cheers and brandy from appreciative Londoners.

On that day, No 504 Squadron destroyed 5 enemy aircraft and damaged 4. Sergeant Ray Holmes became a celebrity and a hero of one of the most famous incidents of the Battle of Britain. He was invited to meet the King and Queen, interviewed on BBC Radio and received more than a hundred letters from the public – including a telegram from Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, who had witnessed the episode herself, praising his bravery. Ray survived the war, left the RAF service as a Flight Lieutenant and became a journalist.

He died on 27 June 2005 at the age of 90. The year before, in 2004, his Hurricane was excavated from Buckingham Palace Road. The control column with its gun button still set on Fire mode and the part of the Hurricane’s engine are currently on display in the reception area of Historic Hangars (Hangar 3) at our London site.

In his honour a beautiful replica of his Hawker Hurricane MK 1 in the colours of No 504 Squadron is now on display at our site as a Gate Guardian – the perfect reminder of Ray Holmes’ bravery and of an amazing story from the RAF’s breath-taking history.

This year Royal Air Force is celebrating its 100^th anniversary. It has been a long and breath-taking journey from the early aviation pioneers, explorers and daredevils on 1918 to the modern heroes, peacekeepers and fighting force of today that works with the cutting-edge technologies in the disaster zones across the globe.

The RAF Museum is honoured to be involved in the 6-months’ programme of commemorations and celebrations that commenced on Saturday 31 March with the Royal Air Force Gala at the Royal Albert Hall.

On Easter Sunday 1 April both sites of the Royal Air Force Museum in London and in Cosford organised an amazing birthday celebration to mark this once-in-a-lifetime occasion. It was fantastic to see so many people, families with children, youngsters and senior visitors, joining us in celebrating and commemorating the RAF’s Centenary.

Our London site was visited by 15,000 people, and each visitor had a fascinating opportunity to experience all the exciting and unique activities we had prepared. One of the highlights of the day was undoubtedly the immersive show from Front of House Theatre Company bringing to life the stories of the early aviators from 1918, such as Lieutenant Indra Lal Roy, India’s first flying ace, Robbie Clarke, Britain’s first black pilot, and Grace Mary Berry one of the first member’s of the Women’s Royal Air Force with her diary. Our younger visitors were delighted and ‘mesmerised’, as they discovered an important part of RAF and UK history.

Our London birthday guests were also taking pictures in the real First World War flying jackets in front of our beautiful aircraft, painting dozens of their own RAF flags, discovering the story of Hendon airfield and early aviation in Hendon and finally cheering the RAF100 Baton Relay team , who had successfully completed their first day taking the RAF100 Baton from St Clement Dane’s Church, the Royal Air Force’s church, in the Strand as part of its 100 day journey across the globe. Our London site was the first of the 100 RAF related stations across the whole world, which the RAF100 Baton Relay team will visit by July 10 – a 100 days from the start of its journey.

Our celebration at Cosford lasted for 2 days, Easter Sunday and the Bank Holiday Monday. During this 2-days festival our Cosford site also proved hugely popular and was attended by over 11,000 visitors – with a total of 15,000 visiting during the Easter weekend. Over 80 re-enactors from across the country brought our Cosford to life with their displays depicting amazing RAF stories through the years. Highlights included Vulcan storytelling, engine demonstrations and uniform and artefact handling.

Both celebrations had such an amazing, joyful and uplifting atmosphere that we are confident they have inspired some of our younger visitors to take the RAF forward into the next 100 years.

As mentioned before both of those outstanding events were just a mere part of the 6-month’s celebration of the RAF Centenary the RAF Museum is involved in.

This summer our London site will re-open after the successful completion of the RAF Centenary Transformation Programme. This will provide our visitors with a much improved visitor experience including a fully re-landscaped site, offering a new green space in the heart of Colindale ; 3 new magnificent exhibitions with plenty of new exhibits never
seen by the public before; plus new ways to access our collection both on and off-line as befits a world-class museum connected with
a global audience.

We look forward to welcoming you again and invite you to explore from this summer our expanded collection – which will offer richer engagement and people-focused
interpretation.

We also hope that you will make the most of this 6 month’s of celebrations and commemorations by participating in many of the RAF 100 activities taking place in your local area… and if you see the #RAFBatonRelay Team on their journey over the next 95 days, please shout out your encouragement. Their arrival at Horseguards Parade on 10 July will be spectacular.