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Molly Rose OBE

Discussion in 'WWII Obituaries' started by GRW, Nov 6, 2016.

  1. GRW

    GRW Pillboxologist WW2|ORG Editor

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    "Molly Rose, who has died aged 95, was a pilot in the wartime Air Transport Auxiliary and became one of the “Spitfire Women” when she delivered 273 of the fighters from aircraft factories to RAF units.

    Already a qualified pilot, she joined the ATA in September 1942, flying light aircraft such as the Tiger Moth before advancing to more powerful single-engine aircraft. As she became more experienced, she started flying the Hurricane fighter and then the Spitfire (“a thrilling moment”). For much of her service she flew from Hamble airfield, an all-female unit near Southampton.

    On some days she flew three or four different types of aircraft. Before flying a new type the pilots read aircraft notes and used a detailed checklist before starting up. They flew without radios, and many airfields were camouflaged and difficult to find.

    She also delivered twin-engine aircraft such as the Anson and the Hudson, before she started flying the Wellington bomber, and she mastered the Beaufighter and Mosquito, aircraft which many pilots found a handful. As the war progressed she transferred to the more advanced Spitfire variants, the Typhoon and the powerful Tempest fighter-bomber.

    While at Hamble she saw the forces assembling for the forthcoming invasion of Europe in June 1944. Her husband Bernard, a captain in the 4th City of London Yeomanry (Sharpshooters), was embarked in a tank landing craft and a week later it was reported that he had been killed in action. But she continued with her flying duties and six weeks later learnt that he had survived and was a PoW.

    That was her busiest year and during it she delivered 253 aircraft. She added a further 94 the following year, which included the Mustang, before leaving the ATA in May 1945 as a first officer. Altogether she delivered 486 aircraft and flew 38 different types. She never flew again as a pilot.

    The daughter of David Marshall, the founder of Marshall Aviation of Cambridge, Molly was born on November 26 1920 and educated at a school near Cambridge before spending a year at a finishing school in Paris. In 1937 she joined the family business as an apprentice engineer. Her older brother kept a Tiger Moth in a field behind the family home and she persuaded him to teach her to fly. She gained her pilot’s licence aged 17; the same year she got her driving licence, and in 1939 she married Bernard Rose.

    In 1942, just after her husband had left for North Africa with his regiment, she received a call inviting her to join the ATA. She travelled to London in her new uniform to have a photograph taken and sent a copy to her husband with a note: “I hope you don’t mind darling, I’ve just joined up!”"
    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2016/11/01/molly-rose-spitfire-pilot--obituary/
     

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