RAF Museum seeks women's air force stories

From the Forces Reunited newsletter:

The RAF Museum is searching the UK to find female veterans who served within the Service and are willing to share their stories and experiences on a new online exhibition, which willhighlight the roles that women have played within the RAF over the years.

An electronic version of the popular 'Women of the Air Force' is under construction and the museum is appealing for previously unheard tales from women who have served in the RAF, the Women's Royal Air Force or the Women's Auxiliary Air Force to appear on the website's interactive forum.

The original exhibition, which is currently on view at the RAF Museum in London, aims to highlight the roles that women have played and still play within the RAF and how their responsibilities have changed over the years.

Nina Burls, the exhibition's curator, said:

"If you consider that in recent years we have seen the appointment of the first female Red Arrow pilot, 3 female Air Commodores, and the award of the first female DFC [Distinguished Flying Cross], the museum felt that now is an appropriate time to raise awareness about the contributions that women have made to the development of today's Royal Air Force. Building on the overview provided by the exhibition, the personal experiences of women who have served are vital in order to do this.

"Every woman has her own unique story to tell, as do her friends and family, and over the coming months we will be highlighting such first-hand accounts held within the museum's collection. The Royal Air Force Museum invites all former and current Service personnel, their friends and families, to further aid this understanding by telling their stories in the Women of the Air Force's interactive forum, which can be found on the museum's website."

The URL of the RAF Museum website which covers both Hendon and Cosford is www.rafmuseum.org.uk. Collecting the personal stories of female former Air Force personnel, it will not only help to highlight women's contribution to the development of the RAF, but will create an important historic archive to inspire the next generation of young women to recognise that when it comes to their own futures the sky is, quite literally, their only limit.

Chris

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