OLIVE Crowther - Bradford's Avro girl - has died.

Working within predominantly male-dominated workplaces, Olive and her fellow female colleagues worked on the planes carrying service personnel across the skies during the Second World War.

Earning £9 a week, Olive's role at Avro - formerly based at the Yeadon aerodrome, now Leeds Bradford Airport - involved following a planned diagram connecting wires on the navigator panels in the cockpits of planes such as the famous Lancaster bomber which was designed and built by Avro for the Royal Air Force.

Olive, whose maiden name was Rhodes, recalls leaving the mill where she had been working at 14 in her home city of Bradford to go to the Aerodrome at Yeadon Airport after receiving a letter from the Government.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Olive on her 90th Birthday when she recapped on her fascinating career, and listened to her sing The Avro Girls which she and her colleagues sang during their work.

“We are the Avro Girls helping to win the war, helping out the boys who are fighting for their King and country.

“We are helping out the boys, we work 12 hours a day Sundays as well. We will never fail you boys. Here’s to the Avro Girls, three cheers for the Avro Girls.”

Olive's career also brought her plenty of attention in later life. She came face to face with aviation history when she met the last of the Lancaster bombers 'Just Jane' at the family-run Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre in East Kirkby set up 20 years ago by farming brothers Fred and Harold Panton in a trip there with her daughter Joanne and her son Philip.

Olive also contributed to 'Women after the War' - a project run within the Faculty of Arts at the University of Leeds looking at what happened to the lives of working women following the First and Second World Wars.

Her invitation to the launch of the International Bomber Command centre in Lincoln came after she was interviewed for the BBC series Women at War - 100 Years of Service recognising their role in the armed forces.

Her proud daughter Joanne told the T&A previously that working at Avro led to her mum becoming quite handy around her home.

“She was always very good at changing plugs and she always used to say ‘It is what I used to do in the war," she said.

Olive died on December 13 - the day before her 95th Birthday. Her funeral takes place on Wednesday December 19 at 9.30am at Nab Wood Crematorium, Bingley Road, Shipley.