ATA Girl

Inscribed & signed on the half title page by

Rosemary du Cros 
(Captain Rosemary Rees MBE)

Frederick Muller. First edition 1983. 105 pages and well illustrated with photographs

Very Fine condition hardback book and dustjacket. Nearly as new.

‘ATA Girl’ is the memoir of Rosemary du Cros (born Rosemary Theresa Rees) who was one of the pioneering women of the Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA). A gifted pre‑war aviator, and later a respected figure in British civil aviation, her life blended glamour, grit, and a lifelong devotion to flying.

In 1939 Rosemary Rees was one of the first eight women to be recruited by the ATA. For six years she flew everything from trainers to 4-engine bombers completing 1025 deliveries in 91 different types. She also flew over 7000 passengers flying the taxi aeroplanes in which the pilots travelled from one job to another. In 1941 she was appointed second-in-command of the all-women Hamble Ferry Pool and was awarded the MBE in 1945.

After the war, she continued flying and remained deeply involved in aviation. She married Philip du Cros, becoming Rosemary, Lady du Cros and eventually retired to Devon, where she lived an active life well into old age. She died on 8 March 1994, aged 92.

An extremely scarce signed ATA memoir.