Women's Royal Air Force

The Women's Royal Air Force (WRAF) was the women's branch of the Royal Air Force. It existed in two separate incarnations: the Women's Royal Air Force from 1918 to 1920 and the Women's Royal Air Force from 1949 to 1994.

On 1 February 1949, the name of the First World War organisation was revived when the Women's Auxiliary Air Force, which had been founded in 1939, was re-established on a regular footing as the Women's Royal Air Force. The WRAF and the RAF grew closer over the following decades, with increasing numbers of trades opened to women, and the two services formally merged in 1994, marking the full assimilation of women into the British forces and the end of the Women's Royal Air Force.

The Central Band of the WRAF, one of only two all-female bands in the British Armed Forces, was disbanded in 1972. Some of its musicians transferred to the Band of the Women's Royal Army Corps.

Women were only permitted to become aircrew as air loadmasters and air stewards until 1989, when all flying posts were opened to women,"Female Aircrew in the RAF", Newscheck, Careers and Occupational Centre, vol. 1, no. 3, July 1990 although they were not permitted to become aircrew on fast jets until 1994.

Strength

The target strength had been a force of around 90,000, figures are unreliable until 1 August 1918, when the strength was 15,433, approximately 5,000 recruits and 10,000 transferred from the predecessor organisations. The first incarnation never exceeded 25,000.

Depots Depots were opened in 1918 at Handsworth College, in Glasgow, at RAF Flowerdown, RAF Spitalgate, near Grantham, and at York. In the 1950s the WRAF Depot and WRAF Officer Cadet Training Unit were opened at RAF Hawkinge in Kent.

Ranks The WRAF inherited its rank structure from its predecessor, the WAAF. As with WAAF practice (from 1940), other ranks held standard RAF ranks, but officers used a separate ranking system until 1968, when they too adopted RAF officer ranks.

These ranks were introduced in 1949. The First World War service used different ranks.

List of Commandants WRAF Gertrude Crawford, 1918 Violet Douglas-Pennant, May–September 1918 Helen Gwynne-Vaughan, September 1918 – 1920

List of Directors WRAF Air Commandant Dame Felicity Hanbury, 1949–1950 Air Commandant Dame Nancy Salmon, 1950–1956 Air Commandant Dame Henrietta Barnett, 1956–1960 Air Commandant Dame Anne Stephens, 1960–1963 Air Commandant Dame Jean Conan Doyle, 1963–1966 Air Commodore Dame Felicity Hill, 1966–1969 Air Commodore Philippa Marshall, 1969–1973 Air Commodore Molly Allott, 1973–1976 Air Commodore Joy Tamblin, 1976–1980 Air Commodore Helen Renton, 1980–1986 Air Commodore Shirley Jones, 1986–1989 Air Commodore Ruth Montague, 1989–1994

See also Air Transport Auxiliary Patricia Howard Women Airforce Service Pilots, US equivalent Women's Royal Army Corps Women's Royal Naval Service

Notes

References

Works cited

Further reading

KB Beauman, Partners in Blue: The Story of Women's Service with the Royal Air Force - 1971 - Hutchinson Radius