Latest news with #RoyalAircraftEstablishment
Pembrokeshire Herald
08-05-2025
- General
- Pembrokeshire Herald
Pembrokeshire great-grandmother recalls VE Day joy outside Buckingham Palace
'You can never understand what VE Day was like unless you experienced it,' says 99-year-old Margaret Johns A PEMBROKESHIRE great-grandmother who partied outside Buckingham Palace on VE Day has shared her vivid memories of the historic moment, saying the sheer joy and relief of the day is something 'people will never understand'. Margaret Johns, 99, was working as a nurse in London on 8 May 1945 when news broke that Nazi Germany had surrendered to the Allies, bringing an end to nearly six years of war in Europe. The Haverfordwest resident jumped on the Tube to central London and joined thousands gathered at the palace, celebrating long into the night. 'They should have given us the day off the next day,' she laughed. Mrs Johns' journey through the war was remarkable. Though a strong student, her formal education ended at 16. During the peak of World War Two, she spent two years at the Royal Aircraft Establishment in Aberporth, Ceredigion, testing ammunition—essential and dangerous work that played a critical role in the war effort. In 1944, she moved to London to begin training as a nurse, working through relentless blackouts and bombings in the capital's hospitals. She served on the wards for five years before returning to Wales, where she continued to care for others well into her 80s. Reflecting on VE Day, Mrs Johns said: 'You can never understand what VE Day was like unless you experienced it.' Pictured above: Margaret Johns was a nurse in London during the war and recalls celebrating VE Day at Buckingham Palace, partying well into the night (Image: BBC) The Pembrokeshire Herald's coverage of the VE Day 80 commemorations are kindly sponsored by PMR
Yahoo
08-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Remarkable women of WW2 to be celebrated
Women who played vital roles during World War Two are to be celebrated in an exhibition at the International Bomber Command Centre. Ten women have been chosen by the centre, in Lincoln, "to represent the contribution, courage and leadership shown by women at all levels" during the conflict. They have been immortalized as 8ft-tall (2.4m) steel silhouettes, which will go on show on 14-15 March, in recognition of what the centre describes as their "previously unacknowledged qualities and capabilities". The statues have been created by Standing with Giants – the team behind the D-Day display at the British Normandy Memorial, which was unveiled last year. By 1943, 90% of single women of working age, and 80% of married women, were working outside the home in the armed forces, industry or other wartime organisations, the centre said. One of the sculptures is of Joan Curran, a physicist. She graduated from Cambridge's Newnham College in 1937, but was not awarded a degree because the university refused to grant them to women at the time. Ms Curran, who secured funding to study for a higher degree, played a critical role in many technical developments. Most notably, she was involved in the invention of "Window" – a radar countermeasure designed to jam German radar equipment. Dorothy Robson was also a physicist and engineer who was responsible for developing the tools for precision bombing. She joined up with the Royal Aircraft Establishment and was known as "the girl with laughing eyes". Dorothy died aged 23 on a mission to check the bombsight on a new aircraft. Another of the statues commemorates Lettice Curtis, who was the first woman to fly and deliver operations in a Lancaster bomber. As a pilot with the British Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA) between 1940 and 1945, Ms Curtis was said to have flown "13 days on, two days off" for 62 consecutive months, in a range of aircraft. The unveiling of the Women in War exhibition will mark the opening of a two-day Women in War book festival, also taking place at the centre. Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here. Teacher's 'extraordinary' life in Nazi Germany Woman receives WW2 medal after almost 80 years Wartime bravery of ambulance women revealed in photos Project reveals 'forgotten' WW2 US Red Cross women International Bomber Command Centre
BBC News
08-03-2025
- General
- BBC News
Remarkable women of WW2 to be celebrated by Bomber Command Centre
Women who played vital roles during World War Two are to be celebrated in an exhibition at the International Bomber Command women have been chosen by the centre, in Lincoln, "to represent the contribution, courage and leadership shown by women at all levels" during the have been immortalized as 8ft-tall (2.4m) steel silhouettes, which will go on show on 14-15 March, in recognition of what the centre describes as their "previously unacknowledged qualities and capabilities".The statues have been created by Standing with Giants – the team behind the D-Day display at the British Normandy Memorial, which was unveiled last year. By 1943, 90% of single women of working age, and 80% of married women, were working outside the home in the armed forces, industry or other wartime organisations, the centre of the sculptures is of Joan Curran, a physicist. She graduated from Cambridge's Newnham College in 1937, but was not awarded a degree because the university refused to grant them to women at the Curran, who secured funding to study for a higher degree, played a critical role in many technical developments. Most notably, she was involved in the invention of "Window" – a radar countermeasure designed to jam German radar equipment. Dorothy Robson was also a physicist and engineer who was responsible for developing the tools for precision joined up with the Royal Aircraft Establishment and was known as "the girl with laughing eyes".Dorothy died aged 23 on a mission to check the bombsight on a new aircraft. Another of the statues commemorates Lettice Curtis, who was the first woman to fly and deliver operations in a Lancaster a pilot with the British Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA) between 1940 and 1945, Ms Curtis was said to have flown "13 days on, two days off" for 62 consecutive months, in a range of unveiling of the Women in War exhibition will mark the opening of a two-day Women in War book festival, also taking place at the to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
BBC News
27-01-2025
- General
- BBC News
WW2 museum in Thurleigh appeals for urgent repair funds
Urgent repairs are needed to conserve and repair a military museum that was created to commemorate the US servicemen who were based there during World War 306th Bombardment Group Museum, a former ammunition storage building, in Thurleigh, Bedfordshire, was opened in Stants, a volunteer, said it houses artefacts and belongings of the group "to keep the memories of those that served" from 1942 to 1945. He said the building needed new front doors, new fascias and guttering repairs - and the heating system required an overhaul. Mr Stants said the building was constructed in the "early 1940s, in the middle of World War Two". "It's on an old airfield, which is open to the elements, and over the past few years with all the wet weather we've had, we've stated to notice things that need upgrading and repairing," he aded that it was hoping to raise £2,500, and had already reached £1,100, which was "phenomenal". It is based at Bedford Autodrome, the former home of the Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) Stants said families of the veterans regularly came over to visit from the United States."We want to give them a place that they know, that they can retrace their families footsteps and were we are there to support that," he added that the repairs would "keep it going and keep the memories of those that served there". The 306th Bombardment group arrived from the Wendover Airfield in Utah, USA, in September 1942 and went on to lead the first USSAF daylight bomb raid over Germany on 27 completed 341 combat missions, the second highest flown in the Eighth Air Force and the first bomb group in the Eighth Army to complete 300 missions. At its height, the airbase was home to about 3,000 Stants said their presence would have created a "large long-lasting impact on Thurleigh and this area of [north] Bedfordshire, it's really important that we can spread the message of what happened there". On 26 April, 1944, nine members of the 306th Bombardment Group were killed shortly after they took off from the airfield. After experiencing an engine fire, the plane came down in nearby Bletsoe. Only the tail gunner, George Littlefield, survived. Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
