The Crew - Wireless Operator/Signaller
It took a team to fly a bomber in WWII and the wireless operator served as the vital link between the aircraft and its base, other aircraft and rescue services. Lancaster Wireless Operator, Imperial War Museum, The limitations of airborne communications systems combined with the need for radio silence to the extent possible meant that in practice pilots very rarely communicated by radio either with other aircraft or with the ground. Instead, wireless communications, which could be more easily encrypted, were used to the extent possible. As with so many other aircrew trades, wireless operators were also initially expected to man one of the guns. With the introduction of dedicated gunners later in the war, however, the wireless operator was "freed" to focus on all aspects of communication from the intercom to the wireless, but also including signalling, i.e. aldis lamp and firing flares. Due to his training, the wireless operator was often expected to be able to repair any ...