Alice Baker (28 July 1898 – 2 March 2006) was a British

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

service veteran. She was one of the last known female British World War I veterans in the UK. Her non-combat service was as a Leading Aircraftswoman in the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

at the age of 18 as a 'doper' waterproofing aircraft wings.

Biography

She was born in 1898 in Costessy, near

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

in England. After the war, she became a nurse at Saint Andrew's hospital in Thorpe. She married a police officer named Stanley. They had a son, Leslie, who was a pilot during World War II. He served in the RAF and as a bomber pilot. At the age of 94, she was invited for the 75th anniversary of the RAF, and stood next to Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

. On Alice's 100th and 107th birthdays,

RAF Coltishall Royal Air Force Coltishall, more commonly known as RAF Coltishall , is a former Royal Air Force station located North-North-East of Norwich, in the English county of Norfolk, East Anglia, which operated from 1938 to 2006. It was a fighter airf ...

pilots did commemorative

flypast A flypast is a ceremonial or honorific flight by an aircraft or group of aircraft. The term flypast is used in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. In the United States, the terms flyover and flyby are used. Flypasts are often tied in w ...

s in her honour. She lived with her family in Hempnall until she was 104, then moved to a

care home A nursing home is a facility for the residential care of elderly or disabled people. Nursing homes may also be referred to as skilled nursing facility (SNF) or long-term care facilities. Often, these terms have slightly different meanings to in ...

Ditchingham Ditchingham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It is located across the River Waveney from Bungay, Suffolk.Ordnance Survey (2005). ''OS Explorer Map OL40 - The Broads''. . History Ditchingham's name is of Anglo-S ...

. Alice Baker died in her sleep at the age of 107 on 2 March 2006.

References

1898 births 2006 deaths British Army personnel of World War I English centenarians British women in World War I Women centenarians Royal Flying Corps soldiers Military personnel from Norfolk {{WWI-bio-stub