Fridays Fabulous Flyer
Female Spitfire pilot Mary Ellis
Female Spitfire pilot Mary Ellis
Mary Ellis was in a select group of female pilots who flew during World War II, called the spitfires. She just celebrated her 100th birthday by flying a plane over West Sussex. She flew with the Spitfires for more than 70 years. My mom sent me this, but the original article was written by by Sarah Oliver For The Mail On Sunday February 5, 2017.
Happy Birthday Mary Ellis!
100 Years Strong!
Mary Ellis
Air Transport Auxiliary pilot
in WW2
"Tearing through the
skies above the South Coast, two Spitfires evoke powerful memories of
Britain's wartime resilience. But this stirring image holds a further poignancy
for in the cockpit of the lead aircraft sits Mary Ellis, celebrating
her 100th birthday by recreating her time as one of the 'Ata-girls', the
select gang of female pilots who flew Britain's fighters during the war. And
over her shoulder is one of the actual Spitfires she flew during her 1,000
flights as a First Officer with the Air Transport Auxiliary.
'Wizard, this is
wizard!' yelled the delighted centenarian through her intercom. Mary was handed
the controls of the 275 mph twin-seater as it swooped over West Sussex. After
about 15 minutes, she turned for home, and told her co-pilot Matt Jones:
'Goodwood on the nose, you have control ...' Then she settled back to
enjoy the ride back to base. Earlier, Mary watched in delight as Spitfire MV154
took its place beside her in an extraordinary airborne tribute. It was a
plane she had delivered to RAF Brize Norton from Southampton on September
15, 1944, and it hides a sentimental secret. For at the end of the
25-minute wartime flight, she signed the cockpit, scrawling her maiden name
Wilkins and the initials ATA."
"Mary Ellis (circled) was handed the controls of the 275mph twin-seater as it swooped over West Sussex. She hoped her tag might be spotted by a handsome pilot and lead to a wartime romance. Although the impulsive act, a career one-off, didn't bag her a boyfriend. Mary, originally from Oxfordshire, had her first flying lesson in 1938, and flew for pleasure until 1941 when she heard a BBC radio appeal for women pilots to join the auxiliary service and so release male pilots for combat duty. Speaking at a surprise birthday party on Thursday, Mary said: 'The war was a challenge and one had to do something about it. I went on and on until I flew everything. I love the Spitfire, it's my favourite aircraft, it's everyone's favourite, it's the symbol of freedom.' For four years she ferried warplanes from factories to frontline squadrons. The 166 women of the ATA, about one in eight of the total have been dubbed 'The Female Few,' echoing Winston Churchill's description of the RAF airmen who fought in the Battle of Britain."
"Mrs Ellis looked back over her left shoulder and
glanced at the aircraft she once flew. Mary was usually found at the
joystick of a Spitfire or a Hurricane but ultimately flew more than 50
types of aircraft, logging 1,100 hours of flight, much to the astonishment of
some colleagues. As she sat on the airfield ready to deliver her first Spitfire,
the mechanic standing on the wing asked how many of them she'd flown. When
she said it was her first, he was so startled he fell right off. The
largest aircraft she flew solo was the Wellington bomber. After landing at an
East Anglian airfield, Mary was greeted by the ground crew who asked where
the pilot was. 'I'm the pilot,' she said. They insisted on searching the
aircraft before they believed her. It was dangerous work. Mary was sometimes
ordered to move combat-damaged planes that were not officially fit to fly,
but had to be taken for repairs. She crash-landed twice and was shot at
once."
"Mrs Ellis toasted a glass of champagne with co-pilot Matt Jones, managing director of Boultbee Flight Academy Fourteen of her fellow ATA female flyers lost their lives, including aviation pioneer Amy Johnson Mary, who to this day needs no spectacles, nor a walking stick, was one of the last six women serving in the ATA when it disbanded after the war. She remained a private pilot and then became managing director of Sandown Airport on the Isle of Wight. She married Don Ellis, a fellow pilot, in 1961, but was widowed in 2009. Matt Jones, who flies Spitfires for Goodwood-based Boultbee Flight Academy, reunited Mary with MV154 after first meeting her in 2015. He conspired with the plane's current owner, pilot Maxi Gainza, to bring it to the UK from its base in Bremgarten, Germany.He said: 'I gave Mary control of our Spitfire. I wasn't sure where we were but Mary was very clear."
Join me in honoring a historic aviator,
compliments of Sarah Oliver!
Enjoy the Journey!
XO Karlene
Mary was one of those extremely brave yet largely unknown bunch of female flyers who delivered new aircraft from factory to airfields all over the country.It wasn't just Spitfires and Hurricanes but large bombers like the Lancaster,Stirling and Halifax.No radar or navigation no radio and most of all,no guns to defend yourself.All flights were VFR,They navigated entirely by visual landmarks in sometimes freezing temperatures.Apparently when she landed at her destination,the ground crews at first refused to believe that the giant Lancaster bomber had been flown by a woman!!!I'm sure a lot of those brave women would have gladly flown combat missions.Back in those days,there were many things that women couldn't do because it was considered that they couldn't do it.How wrong they were !
ReplyDeleteJohn, Thank you so much for your comment. I have a girlfriend that retired from my airline that had sent her a letter in the 70's, thanking her for applying to the airline, but they did not employ women pilots. They acquired her in a merger and she retired from there. Hard to believe!
DeleteThank you for sharing more about Mary. The women aviators of our past should honored. Thank you so much for your comment!
Absolutely Karlene.It took more than half a century before people like her
Deleteand the brave merchant navy seamen who battled through freezing temperatures to deliver vital supplies to Russia.I would imagine that the Baltic Sea is no fun in winter.After the war the Russians were quick to recognize the service they provided during a time when Russia was on the brink of defeat.Yet it took our own government more than 50 years to even thank those brave seamen.Also if their ship was sunk,their pay was stopped!
John, it's hard to imagine what they went through, and sinking ship and no pay? Oh my. I think in todays world we have it so much better than they did.
Delete