大象传媒

Ivy joined the WAAF in June 1941 after trying on the uniform of a friend, Joan Creswick,who had joined three months earlier and had just passed her initial training.She told Ivy to ask to be a Sparking Plug Tester as it was one of the highest paid jobs for WAAF's.
Ivy did her initial training at Harrogate and was passed out and posted to RAF Holme upon Spalding Moor, South Yorkshire, as a Sparking Plug Tester.She was attached to Station Workshops,where the Plug Bay was situated.It was a small room with three benches,three small sand blasting pots,three vices,two pressure testing units,each holding six plugs and fitted with a small hand turned magneto.This was the type of plug cleaning equipment which could be found in any small garage,ideal for cars which had four or six plugs.At the time of her arrival at Holme The Australian Squadron 458 was resident flying Mark 4 Wellington Bombers, fitted with Pratt and Whitney radial engines, each engine eighteen cylinders, total 72 per aircraft, with 24 planes on the squadron. All had to have a spare set of plugs. As well as the Aussies there was a Beam Approach Training flight with six Air Speed Oxfords, total 36 plugs per aircraft, as well as the complement of cars,tractors and lorries.The plugs in th Pratt and Whitney engines had to be taken apart, whereas other plugs did not and were easier to clean.All the plugs were at first put into tins of petrol which were on the benches, and brushed with a wire brush, then the central core was sand blasted. The Plug was then reassembled, the spark gap set, and the plugs tested under pressure to ensure they were satisfactory.
In the Spring of 1942 the aussies went to the Middle East, and were replaced by 101 Lancaster Squadron. These aircraft were fitted with 12 cylinder Merlin engines, a total of 96 plugs per aircraft.These girls were kept extremely busy each and every day.Plugs were changed at least every 48 hour inspection and ofted the odd engine would not be quite right, and the first thing was "Change the plugs".
In 1944 Ivy married Reginal Humphries, who had been with the Aussies as Electrician, but came back from leave to find them gone to the Middle east, so was attached to Station Workshops.While there , with the aid of Sgt Pickles of Workshops, they were able to fit up a magneto taken from a crashed Wellington, and make a test rig capable of testing 18 plugs at a time, making life a bit easier for the girls.
One day the Station Engineering Officer came into the plug bay and asked if any of the girls could help out in his office as his girl had been posted. Ivy volunteered, and stayed in the office until she was demobbed. The Squadron moved from Holme to Ludford Magna, Lincolnshire,known as Ludford in the mud.At the end of the war in Europe Ivy took her demob, and returned home to her widowed mother.
Her friend Joan became a Corporal and was in charge of the Plug Bay at RAF Scampton.Joan told us of an occasion when a lot of plugs came in for cleaning and were needed urgently.They had not been completed, and that evening there was a dance on at the camp, so Joan issued new plugs from the store, took the dirty plugs out and buried them outside the drome.Perhaps by now someone has discovered a hidden pile of dirty plugs?

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