Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly has today announced that a badge of recognition will be created for the surviving pilots and other men and women who served in the Air Transport Auxiliary during World War II.
The badge will recognise the contribution that the men and women of the Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA), including the female pilots known as the 'Spitfire Women', who delivered over 300,000 aircraft between factories and front line airfields.
The ATA was a civilian unit founded in 1938, and included ground school instructors, ground engineers, crash rescue teams, nurses and doctors, administration staff and Air Cadets. The group had a remarkable record and very few aircraft were lost or damaged. Tragically 173 pilots and 8 flight engineers lost their lives including Amy Johnson, the pioneering female civil aviator. By 1945 the group had 650 pilots from 22 countries around the world including from as far afield as Chile, South Africa and the United States.
Ruth Kelly said:
"This badge will be a fitting honour to commemorate the bravery of all the men and women of the ATA and to ensure that those who served are remembered and given the recognition they deserve."
The Prime Minister Gordon Brown said:
"It is right we have recognition for those women who did so much to protect and defend the airports and other military services during the war, and we will go ahead with the proposal of an award for these women."
Officials from the Department for Transport will work closely with representatives of the Air Transport Auxiliary to ensure that the contribution of all those who served are given fitting recognition.
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