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Originated at Kirkby-in-Ashfield Library, Nottinghamshire for Peoples War by Dave Drew on behalf of LACW 2106649 Dorothy Drabble, a member of the local branch of the Royal British Legion.

How I Escaped Into The WAAF’s

‘At the age of 19 the Ministry of Labour poked me with a sharp stick and sent me towards the Royal Ordnance Factory in Nottingham. On my first day the management took a dim view of my arrival fulminating that as I was only 7 stone wet through, I was considered a poor prospect for hauling ammunition. They were fed up of telling that, ‘Idiot woman’ at the labour office to stop sending them, ‘weedy girls’, as there were no light duties job’s available. I took myself off back to the presence, she loudly declared that I would therefore be directed to the ATS, a prospect I was not at all in tune with and said so rather sharply.

The presence then demanded to know just what did I intend doing to help the war effort? Spying a WAAF recruiting poster behind her left ear I promptly declared undying love of the RAF. The presence demanded at once to know my age and on hearing that I was but nineteen spat venom, declaring that had I been twenty then she not I would have determined my fate and I would have been forced into the ATS.

Ironically I’d tried to dodge the ATS on fears of square bashing only to find that WAAF’s marched too. I spent late 1942 being inducted at Morcambe before going on to trade training as a balloon operator at Withaw near Birmingham. Before we could pass out as balloon operators, it was decided by officialdom that girls should no longer operate balloons. We were instantly re-mustered by the simple process of assembling the whole lot of us in large room and a minor god passing through the assemblage uttering ‘Those on the left engines, those on the right airframes‘, and so it came to be.

I was posted to RAF Hednesford in Staffordshire and spent 20 weeks ground school before passing out as Flight Mechanic Airframes. I was to serve most of my time on various midlands O T U’s initially at RAF Ashbourne on Albermarles and Whitleys. I retained a soft spot for the Whitley throughout my service it was a good aeroplane to work on a real credit to Armstrong Whitworth being superbly well made.

My 21st birthday was celebrated with a hanger party on the 21st September 1943 and I remained at RAF Ashbourne until the unit finally closed

It could be cold working on the airframes in the open in winter and I was pleased to see the spring of 1944. Just before D Day I was one of only 3 WAAF’s and 32 airmen chosen by WO Juffs for a special job. Of the girls I recall the other 2 were the WO’s driver and an engine mechanic with me representing the airframes branch. We were bussed to Hampstead Norris a Fleet Air Arm Station where our Albermarles appeared decked out in black and white stripes. Even then we were not too sure about what was happening, only that something big was afoot. Big and back breaking. For we loaded and unloaded, then reloaded tons of window in and out of those Albermarles before they finally left.

My aircraft flown by Paddy Flynn failed to return.

Once Ashbourne closed I moved to RAF Whitchurch on Wellingtons and then Shobden on Miles Masters. I was discharged on June 4th 1946 from RAF Ossington near Newark and was by then quite glad to be leaving.

I enjoyed my time in the WAAF I also met my husband himself a flight mechanic.It was good to have such a sense of unity and purpose with everyone working towards a common end’

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