BEAUTY AND THE 'BEAST' -- WOMEN WITH WINGS AND THEIR PRESS RELATIONS

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 The ferocious media campaign launched against the WASP (Women Airforce Service Pilots) in the United States in 1944 contributed to the untimely and unnecessary demise of the entire organisation. The women pilots in the ATA in contrast profited from professional media relations of exceptionally high quality.

While the creation of the ATA in the early months of the year and passed almost unnoticed in the British press, the decision to employ a handful of female aviators produced a 'storm' of publicity. The press welcomed a story in the midst of the 'Sitzkrieg' before the German invasion of Denmark etc. Furthermore, reporters were delighted to have a story with pretty faces, titles and connections, fame and fortune -- since most of the original female pilots of the ATA were famous in one way or another. 

The initial reports, however, triggered a flood of indignation. The objections voiced by the outraged opponents of of women pilot were largely based on completely false assumptions. Many outraged commentators claimed -- completely inaccurately and possibly based on allegations made by none other than the German propaganda figure Lord Haw Haw -- that the women were earning enormous salaries. Not true. Next outrage focused on the fact that they were take jobs away from male pilots. Also not true.

Yet while the press in Britain in 1940 welcomed diverse opinion pieces, the established aviation media on the whole backed the concept of employing qualified women pilots and paying them 'their full market value.'  Flight magazine championed the cause of women pilots, publishing a picture of the first eight women pilots and Pauline Gower with the caption: "Finland Threatens Russia!" In the article it noted: This threat to masculine vanity consists of a first officer and eight second officers.' The story of an RAF officer who complained about the women pilots being silenced by a peer who asked: 'Are you afraid they'll bring down more Huns than you?' made it into the press. The outrage rapidly died down -- or at any rate disappeared from the page of the papers. 

In any case, with the German onslaught on the West and the rapid fall of Denmark, Norway, Holland, Belgium and France, people in Britain had other things to worry about. Then came the Battle of Britain. At the height of this life-and-death struggle for the existence of the nation -- indeed just days after Churchill delivered his famous praise for 'the Few' in the House of Commons -- the women of the ATA were associated with 'the Few' in the press. It was a publicity of 'coup' of the highest order. Suddenly, the women weren't glamorous curiosities, they were part of the fight, handmaidens to the nation's idols. Press coverage doesn't get much better than that. 

By the end of the summer, press coverage of women pilots of the ATA referred to the discrepancy in pay rates between men and women pilots with approbation rather than approval. The fact that the women would soon be authorised to fly Hurricanes was greeted in the press with enthusiasm rather than shock and horror. Terms like 'a band of brave, skilled British women' [Daily Sketch, 9 October 1940] were now common.

As the war continued, the news coverage of the women tended to become an integral part of the general reporting on the ATA, yet the tone remained consistently positive. In January 1942, a full-length documentary film was released about the ATA. It was intended to show the ATA's contribution to the war by following the "day in the life of a ferry pilot." It featured two pilots, one American and one British, and both male. Both of the pilots who 'starred' in the film were active ATA pilots. The film-crew spent a great deal of time with the ATA and recorded the activities of the ATA factually and accurately, albeit within a contrived structure. None of the occurrences depicted were fabricated, but they did not all occur spontaneously in the course of the one day's work allegedly filmed by the producer. 

Noticeably, the women pilots play a very secondary role in the film. In a short sequence, the pilots of a women's pool are shown going out to their taxi Anson. Later, two women pilots are shown collecting training aircraft at the same field from which the male pilots collect Spitfires. The role of the women is (accurately) depicted as similar and less dominant than the work of the men. 

The following month, a Royal visit was the source of yet more positive publicity for the ATA as a whole. The press reported that the Queen showed a particular interest in the women's section -- just as she took a particular interest in the ATS, WRNs and WAAF.

In September 1942, the ATA celebrated its third anniversary, and again the occasion was exploited for publicity. The ATA was, after all, managed by former airline executives, who understood a thing or two about press relations. While the emphasis was again on the ATA as a whole during in September, a visit by Eleanor Roosevelt one month later swung the attention back the women's division especially.

Yet despite these periodic peaks of attention, the most consistent pattern in media reporting: the press commented favourably on the successes of the ATA as a whole, with special -- but not undue -- reference to the role played by women. A good example of this was a long article in the Picture Post in September 1944. The magazine placed a full-page photo of an attractive women pilot in flying kit on the cover -- 


 -- but devoted the bulk of its internal text to the men. The article incidentally claimed that 'the organisation now works with almost mathematical precision.'

In summary, the press coverage of the ATA can best be characterised as positive to flattering, with the women receiving perhaps a disproportionate -- but not overwhelming -- share of the attention. Strikingly, there is not a hint of scandal, not a whiff of inappropriate conduct, wasted resources, or incompetence. Instead, the ATA managed the extremely difficult task of turning not having adventures into a news story, with a rigorous focus on successful deliveries and low accident rates. This is masterful messaging to say the least, that speaks volumes for the professionalism and discipline of the ATA's management.  D'Erlanger and his staff clearly understood public and press relations and masterminded a publicity campaign that served the interests of their organisation brilliantly.  They kept to their talking points and managed the press rather than being manipulated by  it.

The media management of the WASP was, in contrast, a complete disaster. From start to finish, amateurish press relations resulted in counter-productive publicity from start to finish. That, however, is a topic that must be saved for a separate post.

A former ATA woman pilot is one of the leading female protagonists in the Bridge to Tomorrow Trilogy about the Berlin Airlift.  Find out more about the series at: https://helenapschrader.net/bridge-to-tomorrow/

Watch a video teaser here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7rS_Mwy3TU 

                                      

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