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Glossary
Armed Services
RAF: Royal Air Force
WAAF: Women’s’ Auxiliary Air Force
USAAF: United States Army Air Forces
NAAFI: Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes (provide the recreational institutes for the British Armed Forces)
Other Abbreviations and Terms
NCO: non-commissioned officer
CO: commanding officer
POW: prison/prisoner of war
FIDO: Fog Investigation and Dispersal Operation
LMF: lacking moral fibre (stamped on the discharge papers of those who ‘lost their minds’)
VE Day: Victory Over Europe Day (May 8th, 1945)
Jerry: nickname for Germans commonly used by Allied soldiers and civilians during WWII
Ranks (1944–45; lowest to highest)
RAF / WAAF
NCO Ranks
AC2: Aircraftman/woman 1st class
AC1: Aircraftman/woman 2nd class
LAC: Leading Aircraftman
Corporal
Sergeant
Officer Ranks
Warrant Officer
Officer Cadet
Higher ranks were differentiated by gender; they are listed as RAF / WAAF equivalent.
Pilot Officer / Assistant Section Officer
Flying Officer / Section Officer
Flight Lieutenant / Flight Officer
Squadron Leader / Squadron Officer
Group Captain / Group Officer
Air Commodore / Air Commandant
Air Vice-Marshal / Air Chief Commandant
Air Marshal / no WAAF equivalent
Air Chief Marshal / no WAAF equivalent
Marshal of the Royal Air Force / no WAAF equivalent
NCO Ranks
Private
Private First Class
Technician Fifth Grade
Corporal
Technician Fourth Grade
Sergeant
Technician Third Grade
Staff Sergeant
Technical Sergeant
First Sergeant
Master Sergeant
Officer Ranks
Second Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
Captain
Major
Lieutenant Colonel
Colonel
Brigadier General
Major General
Lieutenant General
General
General of the Army
WWII Planes
Vickers Wellington (RAF): a twin-engined, medium bomber
Avro Lancaster (RAF): a four-engined, heavy bomber
Handley Page Halifax (RAF): a four-engined, heavy bomber
B-17 Flying Fortress (USAAF): a four-engined, heavy bomber
Junkers Ju 88 (Luftwaffe): a twin-engined, tactical bomber
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About the Author
Debbie McGowan is an author and publisher based in a semi-rural corner of Lancashire, England. She writes character-driven, realist fiction, celebrating life, love and relationships. A working class girl, she ‘ran away’ to London at seventeen, was homeless, unemployed and then homeless again, interspersed with animal rights activism (all legal, honest ;)) and volunteer work as a mental health advocate. At twenty-five, she went back to college to study social science—tough with two toddlers, but they had a ‘stay at home’ dad, so it worked itself out. These days, the toddlers are young women (much to their chagrin), and Debbie teaches undergraduate students, writes novels and runs an independent publishing company, occasionally grabbing an hour of sleep where she can.
Social Media Links
Website: debbiemcgowan.co.uk
Newsletter Signup: eepurl.com/b8emHL
Facebook: facebook.com/DebbieMcGowanAuthor and facebook.com/beatentrackpublishing
Twitter: @writerdebmcg
YouTube: youtube.com/deb248211
Instagram: instagram/writerdebmcg
Google+: plus.google.com/+DebbieMcGowan
Tumblr: writerdebmcg.tumblr.com
LinkedIn: uk.linkedin.com/in/writerdebmcg
Goodreads: goodreads.com/DebbieMcGowan
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By the Author
Stand-Alone Stories
Champagne
Sugar and Sawdust
Cherry Pop Valentine
When Skies Have Fallen
Coming Up ~ co-written with Al Stewart
Of the Bauble
Checking Him Out Series
Checking Him Out (Book One)
Checking Him Out For the Holidays (Novella)
Hiding Out (Novella - Noah and Matty)
Taking Him On (Book Two - Noah and Matty)
Checking In (Book Three)
The Making of Us (Book Four - Jesse and Leigh - exp. 2016)
Seeds of Tyrone Series
~ co-written with Raine O’Tierney
Leaving Flowers (Book One)
Where the Grass is Greener (Book Two)
Christmas Craic and Mistletoe (Book Three)
Sci-fi/Fantasy Light
And The Walls Came Tumbling Down
No Dice
Double Six
General
‘Time to Go’ in Story Salon Big Book of Stories
Hiding Behind The Couch Series
Nine friends from high school;
Nine friends for life.
The Story So Far…
in chronological order:
novellas and short novels are ‘stand-alone’ stories, but tie in with the series. Think Middle Earth—well, more Middle England, but with a social conscience!
Beginnings (Novella)
Ruminations (Novel)
Class-A (Short Story)
Hiding Behind The Couch (Season One)
No Time Like The Present (Season Two)
The Harder They Fall (Season Three)
Crying in the Rain (Novel)
First Christmas (Novella)
In The Stars Part I: Capricorn–Gemini (Season Four)
Breaking Waves (Novella)
In The Stars Part II: Cancer–Sagittarius (Season Five)
A Midnight Clear (Novella)
Red Hot Christmas (Novella)
Two By Two (Season Six)
Hiding Out (Novella)
Breakfast at Cordelia’s Aquarium (Short Story)
Chain of Secrets (Novella)
Those Jeffries Boys (Novel)
The WAG and The Scoundrel (Gray Fisher #1)
Reunions (Season Seven)
www.hidingbehindthecouch.com
www.debbiemcgowan.co.uk
All available from www.beatentrackpublishing.com
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Beaten Track Publishing
For more titles from Beaten Track Publishing,
please visit our website:
https://www.beatentrackpublishing.com
Thanks for reading!