Doreen Galvin describes that as a young woman she was passionate about maps and photography, thus knew when the war broke out that she must apply for intelligence work - not admin. After being firstly involved in photo interpretation, Doreen was then moved to Bomber Command and finally sent to be an Operations Officer at Tempsford RAF base. Doreen recalls how on arriving at Tempsford she was immediately thrown into work and quickly taken to the map room. She remembers that upon looking at the wall of maps, she realised that she was standing face-to-face with all the locations of the clandestine operations by the RAF during the war. In this role she was responsible for receiving, processing and reporting these locations and objectives to the War Cabinet. In this interview Doreen fondly recalls her contribution to the war, reflecting upon the excitement of working with maps and photo interpretation during the war. Doreen gives an interesting account of the war effort from a different perspective than that of the front line soldier, by both originating from a female viewpoint and also the clandestine operations which were happening back in England.

John Cumming shares a wonderful account of his time serving with the RAF in the Korean War from January 1951 to September 1952. Born in Glasgow, John welcomed the freedom offered by conscription and completed his training as a movement officer. Upon receiving his subsequent overseas posting to Iwakuni, the Australian Air Force Base in Japan, he admits he had never heard of the place, nor even Korea! At just 20 years old, John describes his initial work in Iwakuni, which mostly involved aircraft loading and movement. Soon enough, however, John undertook a role which transpired to be the defining work of his time in the Korean War: casualty evacuation. He shares some interactions he had with the plethora of injured troops, often a range of nationalities, that he helped to evacuate from Pusan. He also gives his impression of the American, Australian, and Canadian troops, including Australian female nurses, that he worked alongside. John also dives into tales of some close calls aboard Hastings and Dakotas, as well as stories of days spent partying in Korea, and meeting William Speakman-Pitt, VC. John concludes his account by sharing some insightful comments regarding the popular memory of the Korean War as the ‘forgotten war’, and contends with the repercussions of humanity’s disposition for conflict. John’s story reflects his determination and courageousness as he partook in casualty evacuation of the Korean War: a task far beyond what was expected of him when the RAF sent him to Japan.