Meet the Woman who Saved the Royal Air Force

The inspirational true story of Beatrice Shilling

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Beatrice Shilling on her Norton racing motorcycle (1930s). Archive Historical Image. The Norton Motor Bike was initially conceived as a factory-built racing bike that was accessible to everyday riders, either to race or leisure. Beatrice Shilling preferred racing.

The noise was overwhelming.

The alarm continued to blast as crewchiefs screeched orders to the subordinates.

Doors burst open as dozens of airmen raced out of the barracks.

Jeeps and airfield vehicles raced to clear the runway as hundreds of men ran in the opposite direction to reach their aircraft.

Directly overhead, the first of Germany’s Luftwaffe’s bombers, Junkers Ju 88s and Heinkel He 111s, dived as they released their deadly ordinances.

Meet Wing Commander Gillian

A young British pilot, Wing Commander John Woodburn Gillian, found himself strapping into the cockpit of his Rolls-Royce Griffon Mk 24.

The engine roared to life.

Without waiting for the control tower’s call, he released the hand brake.

And as the plane turned into the runway, he pushed the throttle all the way forward, and within seconds, he was airborne.

The Rolls-Royce Griffon is a British 37-litre (2,240 cu in) capacity, 60-degree V-12, liquid-cooled aero engine designed and built by Rolls-Royce Limited. The final Spitfire variant, the Mk 24, was similar to the Mk 22 except that it had an increased fuel capacity over its predecessors, with two fuel tanks of 33 gal (150 L) each installed in the rear fuselage. The F Mk 24 achieved a maximum speed of 454 mph (731 km/h) and could reach an altitude of 30,000 ft (9,100 m) in eight minutes, putting it on a par with the most advanced piston-engined fighters of the era. Picture from Historical RAF Pictorial Archive.