![]() She flew 32 different types of aircraft with ATA, including de Havilland Mosquitos and Wellington bombers. Margaret was killed in ATA service in August 1944.īorn in 1914, Mona Friedlander was a qualified flying instructor with a commercial pilot’s licence. She flew her first fighter at Hatfield in July 1941 and was the first ATA woman to fly a Spitfire. ![]() She left ATA in March 1943.īorn in 1901, Margaret Fairweather joined ATA with over 1,000 flying hours behind her. ![]() Margaret Cunnison was born in 1914 and while with ATA only flew light types. See if you can spot them all!īorn in 1906, Winifred Crossley had been a pre-war stunt pilot, and became the first ATA woman to fly a fighter plane in July 1941 at Hatfield. ![]() The buses run on our route 653 between St Albans, Hatfield and Welwyn Garden City. The ‘ATA-girls’ were a very special sisterhood and we are proud to honour them on 8 of our buses. Until July 1941 women were only approved to fly trainers like the Tiger Moth or communications aircraft, but in 1943 11 women were cleared to fly 4-engined bombers. They flew unarmed, without radio, navigating by map-re ading and always at the mercy of the weather. ATA employed some 1,250 pilots and flight engineers.ġ68 were women, these 8 being the first. In January 1940 at Hatfield aerodrome, 8 women pilots joined the ranks of Air Transport Auxiliary, a civilian organisation which ferried planes between factories and front-line RAF airfields during World War II.
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