Mary Wilkins Ellis visits Tangmere

Tangmere Military Aviation Museum was delighted to welcome a very special visitor who arrived with a party of visitors on October 27th. Mary Ellis (nee Wilkins) is one of the few surviving ’Spitfire Girls’ – the band of indomitable ladies who, as members of the ATA (Air Transport Auxiliary) delivered aircraft to airfields from the factories, and collected damaged aircraft for repair during World War Two.  Mary herself flew 76 different types of aircraft, and made over 1000 flights. Her face lights up when she describes her favourite – the Supermarine Spitfire.


The RAF was not at all enthusiastic to employ women in this way, and the women faced prejudice throughout the war. 


The Air Transport Auxiliary was formed in 1938 when Gerard d’Erlanger, director of British Overseas Airways appreciated that, with war approaching, civilian flying jobs would be lost, but that there would be demand for all types of aircraft ferrying. It was Pauline Gower who was the prime mover behind the idea of experienced female flyers taking an active role in the ATA, and used her ‘connections’ to make this happen.  When the Under Secretary of State for Air, Harold Balfour, proposed that women be admitted, the objections raised fell primarily into 2 categories –


Aviation was an unsuitable profession for a woman


Women pilots would take jobs away from men


Of course, the idea was that the women would take the jobs away from men, thus freeing the men for operational military service .


At first women were only (grudgingly) allowed to fly basic training aircraft, but demand for pilots meant that in May 1941 women were cleared to fly class 2 aircraft – which included Hurricanes and Spitfires, and eventually 12 women were permitted to fly class 5 aircraft (Heavy Bombers). Equal pay came in 1943.  Few of the women were able to remain in flying after allied victory brought an end to the war, although one, Diana Benato-Walker, became the first woman to break the sound barrier in 1963 flying an EE Lightning.


In all 166 women served in the ATA during the war, and 20 lost their lives through accidents.  None were permitted to serve in combat, although there was always the risk of a chance encounter with the enemy.


Tangmere Military Aviation Museum, Tangmere, Nr Chichester, West Sussex PO20 2ES


www.tangmere-museum.org.uk