The Spitfire Sisters

by Margaret Dickinson

  ‘Isn’t she just magnificent? I don’t ever want to fly anything else, but I don’t expect I’ll be that lucky.’

  He kissed her soundly and then led her to the officers’ mess. ‘This calls for a celebration, but I’m afraid it’ll only be tea or coffee.’

  ‘Ooh coffee, please. It’s in short supply where we are.’

  As they sat together, surreptitiously holding hands, Johnny asked, ‘So did it live up to expectations?’

  ‘Beyond everything I’d dreamed it would be.’ Her eyes were shining, her nerves still tingling with the thrill.

  Johnny chuckled. ‘I guessed as much. You look just like I felt the first time I flew a Spit.’

  ‘You just feel so – so right in it. It seems to wrap itself around you like a glove and fly for you.’

  ‘It’s what you’ve wanted for so long. You were made to fly Spitfires, darling.’ He paused and then asked tentatively, ‘I don’t suppose you’re staying the night, are you?’

  She shook her head. ‘No, sorry. Violet’s coming for me a bit later. She’s got another pick-up first and then will come here.’ She squeezed his hand. ‘But I think I’ve got a couple of hours.’

  ‘Daisy, Daisy – guess what?’

  ‘I couldn’t begin to guess.’ Daisy smiled at her friend. She and Gill had grown even closer over the last few months. Gill had been a terrific support during the awful time after the bombing which had taken the lives of George and his daughter.

  ‘You know that the Number Fifteen Ferry Pool at Hamble has become an all-women’s pool. Well, we’re being posted there!’

  ‘Really? Just you and me? I’ll be sorry to say goodbye to some of the others. We’re quite a sisterhood now, aren’t we?’

  ‘No, there’re quite a few of us going. Violet and . . .’ She reeled off several names of the girls who regularly socialized together when the chance came, ending, ‘And Mary Bryant is going too as our ops manager there. There’s a lot of aircraft production around Southampton and they reckon we’re going to be based there so we can get aircraft away from a vulnerable spot on the coast more quickly.’ She put her head on one side teasingly as she added, ‘All sorts of aircraft, but a big majority will be – Spitfires.’

  ‘Oh, that’s all right, then,’ Daisy said happily. ‘When do we go?’

  ‘Next week.’

  Forty-One

  There had always been a celebration at the hall for Daisy’s and Luke’s birthdays which fell close to each other at the beginning of December. Boxing Day too had always been special, for Harry had been born there, arriving unexpectedly when the families were all gathered for Henrietta’s annual party.

  ‘I’ve got an idea,’ Alice said, over breakfast one morning in October. ‘I don’t know if it will work, but we can only ask.’

  ‘What’s that, darling?’

  ‘Wouldn’t it be nice if we could get them all home together – Pips too – for “the birthdays”. We could even ask Gill to come.’

  ‘It’s a brilliant idea, but perhaps Gill would want to use any precious leave to go home.’

  ‘Like I said, we can only ask. Maybe she could come here for a day or so and then go on home.’

  Miraculously, it seemed to all of them, Alice’s idea worked and they all arrived at the hall on 30 November, the night before Daisy’s birthday. Even Harry came home to his parents to join an early celebration for his birthday too, just in case he couldn’t be at home this year for Boxing Day. Johnny and Gill had also been invited to join the family party.

  It was the first time that either Luke or Harry had seen Pips since George’s death and they took her aside to express their condolences. She hugged both of them.

  ‘It was such a cruel irony,’ Luke said, ‘that after that night the constant bombing of London lessened. Of course, they’re still coming over here, but they’re targeting other cities and towns.’

  ‘I think they’re trying to hit industry now,’ Harry said. ‘Look how they went for Sheffield two nights in a row a year ago.’

  ‘They think the first night when they hit the civilians of Sheffield was a mistake. They came back the next night to target the industrial quarter.’

  ‘We don’t think it was,’ Harry said. He turned to Pips. ‘I’ve been at Feltwell in Norfolk for a few months now. I’m involved in night-bombing offensives. The talk there is that everything Hitler and his cohorts do is quite deliberate.’

  ‘I wouldn’t be at all surprised,’ Pips said tartly.

  ‘So, what exactly are you doing, Aunty Pips?’

  ‘Well, for a start, you can both stop calling me “Aunty”. Two strapping lads like you calling me that makes me feel incredibly old – and I am determined not to be. George is the very last person who would have wanted me to wear widow’s weeds for very long. In fact, he said as much when we first got married.’

  ‘Because he was a bit older than you?’

  ‘How very tactful you are, Luke.’

  ‘He was years older than you,’ Harry chirped up.

  Pips laughed and gestured her head towards Harry, ‘But I can’t say the same about him.’ She linked her arms through theirs and led them to the table where a wartime feast awaited them all. ‘Though, I have to be truthful, Harry, you are right, but he was a lovely husband. We had a wonderful time whilst we were together and I will never – ever – regret marrying him. But we all have to move on. I expect both of you are finding that out when you lose fellow pilots. It doesn’t mean you don’t care, just that you have to cope. Now come on, tuck in. My mother and your families too must have been hoarding stuff for weeks to make this.’

  ‘That’s against the law, isn’t it?’ Harry said.

  ‘In large quantities, yes, but not just to save up a few bits for special occasions – and your birthdays are certainly that.’

  As they helped themselves to Spam sandwiches and a slice each of carrot flan, Luke said, ‘You still haven’t told us where you are and what you’re doing, Pips.’

  ‘I’m sorry, I’m not allowed to, but it is helping the war effort. That’s all I can tell you.’

  ‘Ho, ho, are you a spy?’ Harry guffawed.

  ‘Not exactly, but it is top secret, so I’m trusting you not to go telling anyone even that.’

  ‘We won’t,’ the young men chorused, now completely serious.

  ‘We’re always getting it drummed into us that “careless talk costs lives”,’ Luke said and Harry added, ‘And “Be like Dad, Keep Mum”. I like that one.’

  ‘And now I must circulate the room a bit. It’s good to see you both. Stay safe, won’t you?’

  ‘You too, Pips.’

  ‘I suppose,’ Harry remarked as she walked away, ‘we can’t drop the “Aunty” from “Aunty Hetty”?’

  ‘Lord, no. I wouldn’t like to be in your shoes if you tried. That was a rare privilege granted to us when we were young.’

  ‘She never seems to age, does she? She’s as energetic as ever.’

  ‘Who? Aunty Hetty?’

  ‘Mm. Just look at her moving around the room, making sure everyone has got something to eat. How old must she be now?’

  ‘Mid-seventies, I’d guess. At least.’

  ‘What about Dr Maitland? He’s beginning to look a bit older now.’

  ‘Ah, now I do know that. Mam said he had his eightieth birthday last year, but they didn’t celebrate it because of the war.’

  ‘Well, I hope I’m as good as they are when I’m their age,’ Harry said.

  ‘Aye,’ Luke said with feeling. ‘If we survive to make old bones, Harry.’

  On the other side of the room, Pips found Bess Cooper.

  ‘Nah then, Miss Pips,’ the older woman greeted her. ‘We was right sorry to hear of your loss.’

  ‘Thank you, Mrs Cooper, and thank you for your lovely letter. I did appreciate it.’

  ‘I wish we could’ve supported you at the funeral.’

  ‘I didn’t expect it. It’s a long way to come and not the safest of
places at the moment.’

  ‘No. Terrible, isn’t it? All this bombing. Even Lincoln got a bit of a pasting in May.’ Her face was bleak as she added, ‘And look at my two grandsons over there. Very smart in their uniforms, aren’t they? But we’re not daft, we know that every time they go up they might not come back.’

  Pips sighed. ‘Sadly, Mrs Cooper, I can’t argue with that.’ Pips glanced across the room towards Clara Nuttall. ‘Mrs Nuttall seems to be coping better this time.’

  ‘Oh, she’s worried sick like the rest of us, but your mam forestalled her taking to her bed this time by enlisting her into the WVS. Clara feels she’s doing summat worthwhile. It’s what she needs. It’s what we all need. We all need to keep busy and feel we’re helping.’

  ‘What about Mr and Mrs Dawson?’ Pips gestured towards Norah and Len, who were now talking to Luke and Harry. ‘I’m glad to see that he’s at least speaking to them both.’

  ‘He’s not forgiven Luke exactly, but at least he hasn’t disowned him like he did William.’

  ‘And is he managing with his business?’

  ‘Aye. Sam’s there, of course, and they’ve taken on a couple of lads from the village, though they might have to go to war when they reach eighteen.’

  ‘Still no change over William, then?’

  Bess snorted derisively. ‘I dun’t reckon there ever will be. No one hears from him now, Miss Pips. It’s to be expected, I suppose, now he’s living in occupied territory, but it’s breaking poor Norah’s heart. It’s the not knowing.’

  ‘Don’t say anything to her, Mrs Cooper. I wouldn’t want to raise her hopes, but I’ll see if I can find out anything. Of course, poor George would have helped, but I still have contacts at both the War Office and the Foreign Office. I’ll do what I can.’

  ‘Thank you, Miss Pips, I know you will. And now’ – she nodded towards where Luke and Harry were talking and laughing with Daisy, Johnny and Gill – ‘you can tell me just what is going on with those youngsters over there, because there’s summat. You mark my words.’

  Pips stared at them. ‘I really haven’t a clue, Mrs Cooper. I haven’t seen any of them lately. Only Daisy and Johnny at George’s funeral—’ She paused and then added thoughtfully, ‘But whatever’s going on, as you put it, they all seem to be happy about it.’

  If Pips and Bess could have overheard the conversation between the youngsters, as they called them, they would soon have realized exactly what was happening.

  ‘So, Luke, you’re seeing Gill, are you?’ Johnny was saying.

  Luke and Gill smiled at each other. ‘We are now that we know about you and Daisy.’

  Now everyone turned to look at Harry. ‘What about you, Harry?’ Johnny said. ‘Are you going to challenge me to a duel over Daisy?’

  Harry laughed so loudly that several heads in the room turned to look at him. ‘No, I wish the four of you every happiness.’

  ‘But you’ve always said you were going to marry Daisy one day,’ Luke said.

  Harry laughed again. ‘That was only because I thought you were going to. What is it they call it now? Sibling rivalry? I didn’t want to be outdone by my elder brother.’

  Daisy chuckled. ‘And there I was thinking I had two handsome young men vying for my hand.’

  ‘Three,’ Johnny murmured, taking her hand and raising it to his lips.

  ‘Just one thing, Johnny Hammond,’ Luke said and this time he was serious. ‘You mind you take care of her. If you ever hurt our Daisy, you’ll have both me and Harry to contend with.’

  Harry grinned. ‘And we might very well challenge you to a duel then.’

  As they moved back to the table to gather another plateful of food each, Daisy slipped her arm through Harry’s. ‘Have you got a girlfriend somewhere, Harry?’

  ‘Oh, dozens of ’em, Dais. “Safety in numbers” – that’s my motto.’

  Forty-Two

  Whenever Daisy or Gill had leave, they got in touch with Johnny or Luke to see if they could get leave too. Sometimes it was Daisy and Johnny who could meet, sometimes Gill and Luke. On one very rare occasion the following March, all four of them managed to get a weekend off at the same time. They met in a London hotel, the two young men insisting that they should splash out and treat the girls. They dined at the hotel and then went dancing.

  ‘We haven’t got pretty dresses to wear,’ Daisy moaned. ‘We shall look so out of place in our uniforms.’

  But when they arrived at the dance hall, they found nearly all the dancers were in uniform. When a Charleston struck up, there were only a few dancers left on the floor, Johnny and Daisy being one of the couples.

  ‘I can’t do this,’ Gill said. ‘Let’s sit and watch them.’

  When the music stopped, Johnny and Daisy were breathless but smiling, especially when they got a round of applause.

  The evening ended with a slow, romantic waltz. As they walked back to the hotel, Daisy said, ‘And we didn’t even get an air raid.’

  ‘I don’t think we’d have heard it anyway,’ Johnny said, pausing to kiss her. ‘Oh Daisy, when will it all be over?’

  She wound her arms round his neck. ‘When we’ve sent Adolf packing, and now we’ve got America in the war, I’m sure it’s not going to take so long.’

  The whole world had been shocked by the sudden unprovoked attack by Japan on Pearl Harbor in the previous December, but at least Britain no longer stood alone.

  ‘But in the meantime . . .’ Daisy whispered.

  In April 1942, Luke received promotion and was posted to RAF Hornchurch.

  ‘You were so close to Hamble when you were at Tangmere,’ Gill moaned.

  ‘Nothing’s too far on my motorbike to come and see you, darling. And you’ll still be ferrying aircraft to us.’ Luke had tried to cheer her up. ‘Just be thankful it’s not the north of Scotland.’

  ‘Briefing in ten minutes, chaps,’ Tim Millerchip shouted across the mess one morning in early May. Luke threw down his newspaper and followed his friend.

  Close friendships were rare. It was hard enough to deal with the losses after each mission without losing a good mate, but Luke and Tim, who came from Yorkshire, had become friends. They socialized in the mess but whenever they had a proper leave – which wasn’t often at the same time anyway – Tim would go home to see his parents, sister and girlfriend and Luke, too, would try to see Gill or visit Lincolnshire. On duty, however, they often flew side by side and would watch out for each other as often as possible.

  ‘Where to this time?’ Luke asked him as they walked to the briefing room together.

  ‘Rumour is that it’s escort duty for bombers on a mission to an electric power plant in northern France, but we’ll get details in a minute.’

  At a quarter to three that afternoon, their squadron took off from Hornchurch to meet up with the bombers over Clacton. The bombers reached their target, but because of low cloud, they did not drop their bombs. They returned home and landed unscathed, but Luke’s squadron was attacked by German fighters and suddenly the sky over northern France was filled with swooping aircraft and the noise of gunfire.

  Luke felt a jolt and knew his aircraft had been hit. The engine burst into flames and the Spitfire, uncontrollable now, went into a steep dive. He must get out . . .

  Daisy was flying a Spitfire to Duxford under a cloudy sky. She grinned to herself. If the cloud got worse, she might have to stay overnight. She just hoped Johnny would be there.

  When she taxied to a halt, three airmen came running to help her. Johnny was not amongst them, but she recognized one of his friends, Martin.

  ‘Hi, Daisy. Johnny’s not here, but he should be back any time soon. Are you staying?’ He grinned and winked at her. ‘It’s getting late and the weather’s very murky.’

  Daisy laughed. ‘The Fox Tiger’s supposed to be picking me up. If it arrives, then of course I’ll have to go.’

  ‘Come into the mess whilst you wait. We’ll look after you until Johnny gets back. Does he know y
ou were coming here today?’

  Daisy shook her head. ‘No. Usually we don’t know where we’re going until we get given our delivery chits each morning.’

  The three of them kept her laughing helplessly for over an hour. There was no sign of Johnny or the Fox Moth as the weather turned worse. Rain clouds blew in and the day darkened.

  ‘I’d better telephone Hamble to find out what’s happening.’

  When she was put through to the Operations Manager, Mary said, ‘The taxi isn’t coming. The weather’s closed in here. Sorry, Daisy. You’ll have to stay the night there.’

  Daisy’s heart leapt. Now she had official permission – no, more than that, an order – to stay. But at Mary’s next words, her delight faded. ‘By the way, Johnny’s here. He had engine trouble over the Channel and decided to land here. His Spitfire is being checked out now.’

  When Daisy returned to Martin and the others, her disappointment had turned into amusement at the irony of it. ‘He’s there and I’m here,’ she told them. ‘You couldn’t plan it, could you?’

  Martin laughed. ‘Maybe he did.’

  Remembering Johnny’s earlier escapade, she thought it quite likely, but instead she pursed her mouth primly and said, ‘Oh, I’m sure Johnny would never do something like that.’

  ‘Come off it, Daisy. We’d all do it to see our girlfriends if we thought we could get away with it. Now, let’s go and see if we can find you a bed for tonight and then we’re taking you out to dinner. None of us are flying tonight.’

  Very early the following morning, Daisy felt someone shaking her shoulder very gently. ‘Daisy, Daisy, it’s me.’

  Sleepily, she held out her arms to him.

  As Luke landed with a thump and rolled over, he felt as if the breath had been knocked out of his body, but he knew he must hide his parachute and himself as quickly as possible. Breathing hard, he gathered in the billowing silk. He looked about him. No sign of soldiers running towards him with guns pointing at him. Just a small herd of cows, lazily munching grass, eyed him with curiosity. In the far distance he saw the smoke billowing from his crashed Spitfire and prayed it had not landed on buildings. To his left was a copse. Bundling his parachute under his arm, he ran towards the trees. Only beneath their cover did he start to breathe more easily. He pushed the parachute into a thicket of bushes and then crept quietly to the edge of the wood. Where on earth was he? Driven off course in the dogfight, he could be anywhere in France or even Belgium.