Vera Strodl Dowling: The Fearless Woman Who Flew for Britain in WW2
Vera Elsie Strodl Dowling was born on the 16th of July 1918 in
Braughing, Hertfordshire. Her parents were Danish, and after they struggled
with financial difficulties, they were forced to leave England. They returned
to Denmark in 1930. Vera became fascinated by flying after experiencing it for
the first time at the age of eleven.
She was determined to become a pilot. So she returned to England in 1934 and
lived in Hastings near the Sussex Aero Club. She worked as a waitress and a
cleaner to pay for her flying lessons. Her hard work paid off when she earned
her pilot’s licence in January 1937.
Vera then worked in aircraft manufacturing, where she gained technical
knowledge as an inspector and then as a test pilot. The war was edging ever
closer and she decided to stay in
Britain.
In 1941, Vera joined the Air Transport Auxiliary, she became the only
Scandinavian woman to fly for the organisation during the Second World War. She
ferried military aircraft between factories and airfields, including damaged
planes that could be extremely dangerous to fly. It carried serious risks, and
many ATA pilots lost their lives. During the war, she completed around 200
flights and flew roughly 1,500 hours.
After the war, Vera continued her career in aviation as a flying instructor
in Britain, Sweden, and then in Canada. She remained active in flying for
decades, eventually logging over 30,000 flying hours. In 2000, she was honoured
by Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame for her lifelong contribution to aviation.
She died in Edmonton, Canada, in 2015 at the age of 96.
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