Flying Officer P Ingleby, sitting at his navigation table in a No. 619 Squadron RAF Lancaster, 14 February 1944. The navigator was an essential member of any World War II bomber crew, for without his skills it was impossible to reach the target. In a Lancaster he sat at a table immediately behind the pilot, in a curtained off space where he could use a light. On his table the navigator plotted the course on charts, in the early stages of the war with instruments and ground observation alone, but eventually assisted by radio instruments such as GEE and H2S radar. GEE transmitters in England sent out radio pulse waves at different time intervals, allowing the navigator to fix his position, but unfortunately, because of the curvature of the earth, they were ineffective on operations deep into Germany. Although primitive by today's standards, the H2S radar allowed for some sort of position check through cloud on ground features below. [Imperial War Museum CH12288]
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