We have collected links to a number of (mostly-) external resources to provide additional context, analysis and biographical information, without trying to be comprehensive.
Wikipedia
A good summary page is available on Wikipedia, which can be accessed without leaving this site. Wikipedia pages dedicated to individuals can be accessed from their personnel records in the digitised archive.
Bibliography: Please refer to the foot of the Wikipedia page. Books still in print can be purchased from the online shop at Maidenhead Heritage Centre or in person.
BBC video clip
Spirfire Women was first broadcast in 2010. It is not usually available on iPlayer, but there is a short extract clip available (opens in a new tab). The programme description reads:
“During WWII 168 female pilots fought against all the odds for the right to aid the war effort. These trailblazers were part of the Air Transport Auxiliary – a thousand strong organisation that delivered aircraft to the frontline RAF. They were expected to fly wherever the need was greatest , in whatever aircraft was required – one in 10 women pilots died flying for the ATA.
Their story is one of courage, sexism, patriotism but above all, a story about women who wanted to break the confines of the world they lived in – and reach for the skies.”
Anna Peterson
Dr Trevor Stone
Link to Fonthill Media (opens in a new tab)
Royal Aeronautical Society
Leading glider pilot, Philip Wills, was one of the first to join the new service in 1939 and went onto become the ATA’s second-in-command and Director of Operations. Full of stories of his time in the service, Wills shares his knowledge in this 1965 audio lecture of how the service was rolled out, the day-to-day work of its pilots and their training. He also highlights how the organisation set standards for the future path of air accident investigation and pilot documentation through the development of their flying and ground handling notes – the one-stop-shop for those interested in how to fly World War II aircraft.
Website: www.aerosociety.com
RAF Museum
Online exhibition pages containing contextual information about the Air Transport Auxiliary and a number of biographies.
Website: www.rafmuseum.org.uk
Solent Aviatrix
Celebrating the local aviation history of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight area. It contains some excellent biographical information.
Website: solentaviatrix.wordpress.com/
Air Transport Auxiliary Association
An organisation created to keep alive the memory of all those who worked in ATA in WW2 and ensure that their story is told accurately.
Website: www.airtransportaux.org.uk/
The US ATA perspective
Ann Wood-Kelly – one of the US ATA veterans – developed a website (airtransportaux.com) in her later years, commemorating the contribution made by US flyers, especially the women recruited by Jackie Cochran. The website content is essentially unchanged but is now preserved as part of the ATA Archive. It contains a wealth of valuable contextual information.
Website: atamuseum.org/us_ata_veterans