Stories from across the globe
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The Gulf War 1990 - 1991
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You never train for the war you fight
John Peters -
We do our best at the very edge of our limits.
David Waddington -
You live in fear of the black car.
Christine Ankerson -
These things are difficult, but one soldiers on.
Graham Grice -
I just thought how dare they.
Christine Ankerson -
I thought this would be a really stupid way to die.
David Waddington -
I heard people screaming and wondered if I was next.
Sqdn. Ldr. Bob Ankerson -
John ate the map
John Peters -
I told my wife I was alive, well and free.
Sqdn. Ldr. Bob Ankerson -
The guards wanted us to smell nice.
Bob Ankerson -
Every night we could hear the bombing
Sqdn. Ldr. Bob Ankerson -
They put us on TV to create division in the political will to fight
John Peters -
I spent most of my time in captivity in solitary confinement.
Sqdn. Ldr. Bob Ankerson -
I found myself hanging under a parachute for the first time in my life.
Bob Ankerson -
All of a sudden you're just two bodies lost in the desert
John Peters -
I spent seven weeks getting the shit kicked out of me
John Peters -
We knew we weren't going home.
Bob Ankerson -
They beat us with their pistol butts
John Peters -
Once you see the missile you have 3.5 seconds until impact.
David Waddington -
The Red Cross put themselves in great danger, with only a badge for protection.
Sqdn. Ldr. Bob Ankerson -
They took my gun and both my watches, but they didn't find the gold.
Robbie Stewart -
We just don't know how you're not dead
John Peters -
Unless I tell him something I'm going to die.
Robbie Stewart -
We were trying to give ourselves up, but they kept shooting at us
John Peters
Fighting the pandemic
It is difficult to think of any aspect of life which hasn’t been affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
Since we first went into lockdown in March familiar routines of home, work, school and social life have been disrupted. Some will have found the experience traumatic, others will have been inspired by a sense of togetherness. Some will have had to cope with the personal tragedy of losing friends and relatives. But all of us have had to make changes.
The RAF has approached the pandemic with the pragmatism and dedication to duty you would expect.
We have been talking to RAF personnel to learn how the pandemic has affected them individually, how it has affected the institution and how the RAF has supported communities during this crisis.
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We didn't feel like we deserved it, but it was lovely to see that recognition
Kathryn Clancy -
You have to build a rapport
Flight Lieutenant Kathryn Clancy -
If you need help, you need to phone
Flight Lieutenant Kathryn Clancy -
We had a Covid graduation
Corporal Emily Fitzpatrick -
When a 999 call goes out, we respond
Wing Commander Adrian Gillespie -
It would have been easy to wade in and take charge; but that wasn't our job.
Squadron Leader Dave Morton -
The pandemic has actually been really helpful for us
Flight Officer Lauren Hall -
We needed to ensure that our students could keep training
Flight Lieutenant Gareth Davies -
There was a lot of fake news going around
Acting Corporal Hannah Colton -
My unit can't socially distance while doing our job
Squadron Leader Dave Morton -
I've had to do a patient assessment through a window
Wing Commander Adrian Gillespie -
There are always people willing to step in and help
Wing Commander Adrian Gillespie -
We sometimes have to deal with some quite nasty things, some quite tragic things
Wing Commander Adrian Gillespie -
Some of the best people who have stepped in to help have been young people
Wing Commander Adrian Gillespie -
The speed at which things were changing called for a military planning team
Dave Morton
Human Spirit
Facing a shared threat can bring out the best in us, individually and as a community. Over the next few weeks and months our lives will be turned upside down. We will all face challenges, and at times we will struggle.
We would like to share with you some stories of courage, compassion and personal triumph. We hope that they will give you cause for optimism and remind you of the strength of the human spirit.
Resilience, determination, cooperation and kindness won’t solve the problems we are currently facing, but they will make them easier to bear.
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The Battle of Britain was going on right above our heads
Eileen O'Sullivan -
We had no machinery. But the kids with a cd player gave me an idea.
Flt. Lt. Gareth Davies -
You forget how kind people can be
Emma Knutzen -
The night they bombed Surrey Docks
Eileen O'Sullivan -
When we lose someone we journey through it as a family.
Alice McDermott -
Bullies will not be tolerated.
Mark Johnson -
We are all human beings
Kurt Schulze -
Someday we'll have enough food. But if we lose our freedom we'll never get it back
Gail Halvorsen -
For a long time I called myself a failure
Rachel Williamson -
55,000 souls on board
Air Cdre Paul Godfrey -
My 21st birthday present was to still be alive
Roy Finch -
I saw these people as heroes. I didn't think I was worthy
Paul Twitchell -
The first transatlantic flight, 14th June 1919
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The banter, the camaraderie; you are helping each other through your injuries
Stuart Robinson
Jewish Hidden Heroes
During the Second World War, some 20,000 Jewish men and women from all over the world joined Britain’s Royal Air Force to fight against tyranny, racism and anti-Semitism.
For too long the RAF’s Jewish personnel have been ‘Hidden Heroes’, their exploits unknown. The RAF Museum has developed the ‘Hidden Heroes’ project to raise awareness about the untold story of Jewish personnel in the RAF during the Second World War and the vital role they played.
This project is supported by Roman Abramovich and the Chelsea Football Club Foundation.
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One of the most remarkable figures in British wartime intelligence
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A star performer
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Behind enemy lines
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Eli Cashdan
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Chauffeur to Churchill's daughter
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Night bombing Rommel's supply lines
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We have to thank these men for our freedom and prosperity
Ben Lewis -
The navigators deserve all the praise
Benny Goodman -
I was captain of the aircraft with no operational experience at all
Benny Goodman -
There was no way out for us
Benny Goodman -
The Tirpitz represented a threat to the whole Atlantic Ocean
Benny Goodman -
Well, if you needed to pee...
Benny Goodman -
It was a dark night, low clouds and raining
Benny Goodman -
I was a bit worried about my eyes
Benny Goodman -
You'll have no armour and only two guns. You'll be going after The Tirpitz.
Benny Goodman -
An adventurer who loved to fly
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Only four of the crew came back
Keith Palmer -
German were taking potshots at their Lancaster
Paul Aldwinkle -
The Dutch were starving under German occupation
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There were things that happened that preyed on the mind
Lloyd Levy -
My father was one of the lucky ones
Lloyd Levy -
After everything he'd been through, they made him pay for his bike and his uniform
Paul Aldwinkle -
He kept that piece of shrapnel
Paul Aldwinkle -
The tail gunner would chuck bricks out over Germany
Paul Aldwinkle -
The Typhoon became aerial artillery
Joshua Levine -
He kept a model of the Typhoon on his desk
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He almost became a member of their crew
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They fought for a cause they believed passionately in, and they died for it
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One engine, no control panel, rudder pedals hanging in mid air
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For the rest of his life he never liked to see bare lightbulbs
Anne Leadercramer -
If it wasn't for the deep snow, the fall would have killed him
Anne Leadercramer -
The Germans never knew his true identity
Joshua Levine -
Joan was at the heart of the Battle of Britain
Joshua Levine -
National Service was an opportunity
David Lang -
My wife was lucky to survive
David Lang -
They crashed into the sea off the Dutch coast
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A specialist in codes and ciphers
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The South China Sea was rife with pirates
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I was born a Jew and I wanted to die a Jew
Alfred Huberman -
What are the chances of that?
Alan Waxman -
He had never met people like these
Alan Waxman -
Three and a half years of Hell
John Fisher -
We tried to live as normal a life as possible
David Lang -
If you try to leave, I'll have you sent to a concentration camp
Alan Waxman -
A horrific time for any Jewish family
Alan Waxman -
Exceptionally determined, exceptionally focused
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I was captain of the aircraft with no operational experience at all
Benny Goodman -
Skipper! Quick - dive!
Alfred Huberman -
Germany was not a place for Jewish people
Milton Brazil -
303 Squadron wasn't the same after the Battle of Britain
Max Moray -
Without the Mulberry D-Day couldn't have gone ahead
Ralph Levy -
It felt as if war was imminent. And we were very scared of that
Ralph Levy -
The Tirpitz represented a threat to the whole Atlantic Ocean
Benny Goodman -
My father changed his name by deed poll
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They had never met a Jewish boy before
Ralph Levy -
The bombing had taken its toll. There wasn't much left
Ralph Levy -
The German's acted as if they'd won the war
Ralph Levy -
The worst experience I ever had
Alfred Huberman -
My first operation was an absolute flop
Alfred Huberman -
Fog was a real bloody nuisance
Alfred Huberman -
I was a bit worried about my eyes
Benny Goodman -
The most evil doctrine
Alfred Huberman -
What the hell are you doing here? You're a pilot!
Max Moray -
It was like someone sticking a knife into me
Max Moray -
All the Jewish guys ended up eating bacon
Max Moray