Ruby Openshaw

Ruby Openshaw worked at the Avro aircraft factory in Chadderton, Manchester, which produced the iconic Lancaster bomber. She was part of the team that built the modified Lancasters used by 617 Squadron — the famous Dambusters — for the raids on the Ruhr dams in May 1943. Ruby's job was fitting electrical wiring harnesses in the fuselage, intricate work requiring steady hands. The factory built over 3,000 Lancasters during the war. Ruby always said she was proudest when she heard Lancasters flying overhead and knew she had helped build them.