The women behind the few

This is the little-known story of the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force, the women’s branch of the Royal Air Force in the Second World War, and the vital work they did behind the scenes to ensure the success of some of the most important missions of the war. During the Battle of Britain, for example, WAAF personnel worked in the radar network and the Dowding system, the world’s most sophisticated air defence system, as well as in the Y listening service, intercepting German ground-to-air and air-to-air communications. During the Blitz, they worked with ground-controlled interception radar to aid Fighter and Bomber Commands in protecting Britain’s civilian population from German area bombing.