Keeping Watch: A WAAF In Bomber Command

A true wartime account from a Bomber Command radio operator, watching aircraft lift and crews return.

Charles, in T-Tare, rumbled along, weighted heavily with bombs, and the Lancaster began to lift as she drew level with the Watch Office. Then, directly opposite, the aircraft seemed to stagger...If Tare had crashed, the consequences to the crew, to all of us in the Watch Office, were only too obvious. The immense surge of will power to keep the loaded machine airborne could be felt, in that moment, as a tangible force emanating from the Watch Office to the aircraft in a concentrated beam. Very concentrated. Perhaps it helped, for Charles managed to pull up her nose and labour into the air; but it was a nasty moment for all of us.

A sensitively written true story by a World War II RAF Bomber Command Radio Telephony operator who talked down the crews on their return from operations, met them off duty and so often, within days, mourned their loss.

Sparkling with anecdotes and humour, Keeping Watch describes daily life on RAF stations including Waddington, Bardney and Upper Heyford where WAAF's provided much needed support to courageous RAF pilots and their crews. Often producing theatrical shows and undertakings small housekeeping duties these dedicated servicewomen eased the lives of those fighting in their country.

Underlining a deep admiration for the members of Bomber Command who carried the fight to the enemy, Keeping Watch provides a lasting record of those truly remarkable men.