Hello, Did the Officers of the ATS join as Officers, or did they join as OR's first? My Grandmother, Monica Isabel Lorraine Marchant, was an Officer in the ATS from July 1939, i have her name on The London Gazettes and Army lists. I was just wondering if she had joined earlier. She left the ATS in 1941 then in 1942 joined the WAAF as an Officer, with an addition to her surname of 'Mcalpin'-Marchant, her husbands middle name, trying to make her name more posh i think ha ha. I have sent for her records, so hopefully in the next few weeks ill have those. Your help and time are greatly appreciated. Thank you
Hi I would have thought that her service records will provide you with a definitive answer to that question. It would be good to hear the conclusion for others may be interested to know as well TD
Sorry for late reply,technical issues!! Thank you for your reply TD, I will let you know when i get them and tell all of my findings. What should i expect from an Officers file, does someone have an example please?
Yes will be great to see the records, Glad you took our advice. Did my Grandmother serve in the WAAF?
Fair enough, its killing me it takes so long. Fair do's to them, limited staff etc. I'll post when received. Thanks all, greatly appreciated CW
The ATS radio operators who served with the Special Duties Branch of Auxiliary Units (The secret British Resistance) were first interviewed to check that their voice was clear enough for radio transmission. If it was they received some training then sent to an OCTU in Edinburgh for a shortened course to become officers. They returned to Aux to take up a post in a secret radio station - initially in a 'hut' then in a underground hide. see www.staybehinds.com for more info. NB: ATS other ranks had to be billeted in groups of ten or more. As officers they could be billeted individually in digs near to their radio station (They worked in groups of three). They could also use the officers mess at nearby Divisional Heaadquarters.
