Study for 'Take Off': Flight Engineer by Dame Laura Knight, charcoal on paper

Knight made this charcoal study of Flight Sergeant Alexander Quadling for her painting 'Take Off' (1943, Imperial War Museums), which represents a Stirling bomber crew preparing for flight.

Quadling, a Flight Engineer, extends his right arm in this loosely drawn sketch. In the finished painting he operates a switch on the Flight Engineer's panel. Based at RAF Mildenhall with No. 15 Squadron, Knight, who did not accompany the crew in flight, posed the men as if they were about to embark on a raid over Germany. Commissioned by the War Artists’ Advisory Committee (WAAC) for the Ministry of Information, 'Take Off' was arguably a propagandist vision of Bomber Command, to encourage positive publicity and recruitment. Rather than focusing primarily on the aircraft and operations, but on the crew as serious and dedicated young men, the painting hints at their vulnerability, conveying a disarmingly personal, rather than strategic, perspective to make the scene relatable. Bequest of the artist, 1974. Copyright: the artist’s estate and Bridgeman Images / RAF Museum.