In these strange and uncertain times, I post a photo of the interior of the Saint George’s RAF Chapel of Remembrance at Biggin Hill in Kent, England. As some people might know, RAF Station Biggin Hill as it was then, played a key part in the summer of 1940 during the Battle of Britain. Its fighter pilots fought with distinction against the Luftwaffe, and were ably supported by courageous ground crews and station personnel who kept things going despite a number of devastating air raids.The Battle of Britain has passed into legend as one of the times when the UK has prevailed in times of adversity, along with the myths that the Spitfire won it and the RAF was outnumbered. (The facts are a little different!) Thanks to the vision and preparation before the Second World War of the head of the RAF’s Fighter Command — Air Marshall Dowding — the Royal Air Force’s squadrons of Hurricanes and Spitfires were up to the job of keeping the Luftwaffe from British skies during daylight hours (when it could have done the most damage). Dowding — as a former fighter pilot himself — took a keen interest in the needs of his pilots (his chicks), and knew that they would be at the sharp end of things. Therefore, anything that could be done to protect his pilots (bulletproof windscreens, seat back armour) or give them an advantage (higher octane fuel, DeWilde ammunition) was organised. Then of course, there was the Dowding System, the world’s first co-ordinated air defence system.
So what’s this got to do with the COVID-19 pandemic? Well, unlike the mid- and late-1930s, it seems that in the Western Hemisphere, no-one saw this coming — or else decided the risk was too small to bother with. So we have frontline medical workers (the fighter pilots of today) working long hours, exposing themselves to high levels of Coranavirus, and struggling to source effective Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), despite repeated assurances from the UK government that this is under control. Can you imagine pilots bolting-on protective windscreens and armour plate to their fighter aircraft in 1940? Or taking off without oxygen masks?
In 1940 the UK had a mature RDF (Radar) and tracking system to show when and where the threat was likely to come from. Still as of today, the UK has limited Coronavirus testing, and no case tracking scheme that I am aware of. How is it possible to contain the spread of the disease and return to normality in a reasonable amount of time if no-one knows where the cases are? Or who has already had it (and has not been to hospital)?
My heart goes out to all frontline workers, facing an enemy they cannot see with the uncertainty of the harm it will cause.
I would like to think that this is a wake-up call for the planet, but the signs are that the world leaders still don’t understand the message. May you live in interesting times...
