After losing his job at a timber yard Clifford joined the RAF just before the conscription age of eighteen. When he had completed his training, he was posted to Gatow in Germany, the main British airfield, at the start of the Airlift in June 1948. He was a clerical worker, ensuring the safe and rapid turnaround of hundreds of flights, as well as performing guard duty and manual work. During the Airlift disassembled vehicles and food were delivered and on the return journey they brought back sick children and post, which was forwarded. There were large numbers of Germans working on the base, alongside the RAF personnel and during the Airlift the western Allies began to be seen as defenders, rather than occupiers. He remembers the appreciation of German children and parents when he and his comrades gave the children a Christmas party on the base. The British troops paid for this and gave gifts of chocolate bars and oranges to the youngsters. In Berlin he acquired an appreciation of opera, made good friends and had a German girlfriend. Marrying German women however was frowned on by the British authorities. One episode he recalls vividly is getting very drunk on his 21^st birthday and being disciplined by his superior officer. Clifford felt that he matured from a boy to a man during his time in Berlin and was sad to leave. Some of his companions thought that the Germans deserved all they got but that was not his opinion.

At the age of fifteen Stanley left school and became an Air Raid Precautions messenger. When he reached eighteen he volunteered for the RAF. He became a gunner on a bomber and carried out over 50 missions. Once his aircraft was caught by searchlights and received anti-aircraft fire, which they escaped by corkscrew diving 9000 feet. Many of the flights were with 624 Squadron, assigned to Special Operations Executive, dropping agents and supplies into enemy occupied territory. These drops were often at very low altitude and at the maximum of the aircraft range, with barely enough fuel to return home. He realised at the time that many of the agents, several of whom were women, would not survive very long. Looking back Stanley thought that he, and others, were too young and foolish to be scared. He regards his time with the RAF as the most interesting part of his life.

Bella Bailey reflects on her fascinating journey with the Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) which changed her life forever. Struggling to find a purpose in post war Britain, Bella decided to join the RAF after discovering a notice for female recruits. Against her mother's wishes, she left home to train at a camp in Winslow. Showing a keen interest for puzzles, she later landed a job as a code messenger at Bletchley park which she thoroughly enjoyed, adapting quickly to the strict accuracy which the role required. Eventually she was posted to a camp in Lubeck, Germany which excited her adventurous spirit. She recalls the train ride through Germany, seeing the devastation caused by the bombings. During the Berlin Airlift, she continued to use a telex machine to send coded messages for important tasks such as reporting what food supplies the planes were transporting from one place to another. Outside of work, she explored Lubeck, learning to relax and have fun with her two friends May and Marj. Despite the tenseness of the atmosphere, the locals were friendly and the soldiers remained civil which made the environment feel safe and comfortable for them. She recalls one mischievous act in which she convinced a pilot to take her to Berlin which could only be done during her twenty four hour shift. Before they could lift off, the corporal caught her and sent her to cookhouse duties for a week. At the time of this interview, Bella has still not visited Berlin. The experience she gained left a profound impact on her life and would benefit her later when given the opportunity to work for the government in the diplomatic wire service. Bella's interview shows the life of a woman who understood discipline, harnessing it effortlessly into their skillset without obstructing her sense of fun and adventure.