She linked arms with Danuta and they walked over the uneven grass towards the gathering. ‘So, do you think your plan will work on Stanislaw?’

‘With some help from you, yes, I think it is very possible,’ Danuta replied, glancing across at the men who were inspecting every inch of the cargo planes with their bright new logo of a phoenix emblazoned on their tails. ‘I like the phoenix,’ she said.

‘We decided on it because it represents new beginnings from the ashes of the war, and Phoenix Air Freight is much more memorable than what we first thought up.’

She stopped and turned to Danuta. ‘I will do my very best to encourage him, Danuta, and have coached Roger and Martin to do the same. But you do realise he has a very long way to go?’

Danuta nodded. ‘Of course I do, and I will be with him every step of the way.’

Kitty grinned. ‘I hope he realises how very lucky he is to have you by his side.’

Danuta giggled. ‘Every day I tell him this, so he knows.’

The morning sped past as she was introduced to the wives and families of the ground crew, drank tea, chatted to Peggy, Anne and Cordelia, and kept a watchful eye on Stanislaw who was in danger of getting worn out from all the walking and standing.

Ron and Frank turned up with the dogs, shortly followed by Brendon, Betty and baby Joseph. It became a real family gathering with children and dogs racing about as the women gossiped and the men went into huddles to talk engines and flight paths and the vagaries of the weather.

As midday approached the men dispersed and Roger and Martin returned with their co-pilots, dressed in their flying gear. An expectant hush fell over them all and even the children stopped playing to watch the men kiss their loved ones and then stride across to the planes. Climbing up the steps, each man waved before the door was shut.

A breathless silence fell to be broken by the splutter and roar of the powerful engines. Chocks were hauled away, another brief wave from the cockpit window, and the first DC-47 raced down the runway and lifted up into the sky, shortly followed by the second.

A huge cheer went up and everyone waved, but the two cargo planes were now almost beyond the edges of the cliffs and lifting higher and higher above the English Channel, the sound of their engines fading.

‘I wish I was with them,’ sighed Kitty, holding Charlotte’s hand. ‘Still, our turn will come soon enough with so many orders to fulfil.’

Stanislaw had chosen to ignore the wheelchair and was jammed into a deckchair. He shaded his eyes against the sun until the two planes were mere specks in the distance. ‘Roger tells me you were both ATA girls,’ he said. ‘I met many such beautiful girls in the war. They were all very brave.’

‘There was nothing brave about it,’ said Charlotte. ‘We were merely doing a job. But we both miss it, don’t we, Kitty?’