International Women’s Day: Q&A with ‘Chinook Crew Chick’ Liz McConaghy

To mark International Women’s Day this year, we spoke with Flight Sergeant Liz McConaghy – the longest serving female RAF Chinook crew member, spanning a 17 year career flying on the aircraft. Liz, now 41, talked about her career highlights and challenges, being a woman in the RAF, and how she overcame her mental health battles when she left the Force.

How and why did you decide on a career on the RAF?
My brother, who is two years older than me, joined the army and I went with him the day he went to his BARB (psychometric assessment) test. I was sat in the foyer of the Careers office and noticed a magazine on the table with a chap hanging outside of a helicopter on what looked like a rope. I thought ‘That’s so cool, I want to do that!’ Not long after, I went to the Police Barracks in Northern Ireland for an interview and, as I was pulling my car into the layby, I saw a Chinook thudding above me. It was so loud and it was then I decided I wanted to work on that particular aircraft. Following my aptitude tests aged 17-18 at the Police Barracks in Northern Ireland, I was accepted on my 19th birthday and shortly after moved to RAF Cranwell.

What was your role and rank in the RAF?
After every bit of training you were given a ‘dream sheet’, where you put the area you wanted to work on in the RAF, but it wasn’t always a given you would get it – it depended on service need at the time. Every time I put helicopters, and once I got onto helicopter training you got to pick what type of aircraft, and I always chose the Chinook. I learnt to fly on a little helicopter called the Griffon (training helicopter) and then I was posted to the Chinook. There was a demand for Chinook crew in Iraq, so I ended up serving there for a while. I came out of training as a Sergeant, commanding the rear of the aircraft, and after five years I was promoted to Flight Sergeant.

How did it feel to be the youngest Chinook crew member to serve in Iraq?
I was only 21 when I went to Iraq – I was limited combat ready and was only halfway through my first operation when I went there. It was a totally new experience for me as a young woman from Northern Ireland who had barely travelled before. It was SO hot – I wasn’t used to 45-degree heat, and it really hit me when I first arrived. It was my job to move troops, ammunition, water and food around the area. It was quite quiet to be honest and the casualties weren’t too extreme – not compared to Afghanistan anyway.

Can you tell us about your experience in Afghanistan?
I worked in the Immediate Response Team (now known as Medical Emergency Response Team) in Helmand, essentially the flying ambulances. It was pretty quiet to begin with but then it got busier and busier, and things got more and more traumatic. The medics were amazing – they saved lives on the battlefield and it was surreal seeing soldiers being brought onto the helicopter literally being brought back to life. It was hard seeing soldiers die and without their limbs – it was difficult to get out of my head. I saw hundreds of injured and dying soldiers over the span of ten years. But after seeing it so many times, you sort of become desensitised with it, and you just get on with it.

Although my time in Afghanistan was difficult at times, it’s also one of the biggest highlights of my career. The fact that I was saving lives on the battlefield – it gave me a real sense of purpose. It’s very hard to match – I’ve done some incredible flypasts in my career and met amazing people, but nothing compares to saving a life.

What was it like being the sole female crewman on the Chinook wing for four years?
I felt very lucky –  the Chinook force is a very exclusive team. They know they have a job to do and they understand that the more diverse you can make your team, the stronger it will be. I was never singled out for my sex from day one – it was like having 60 big brothers. They were so supportive. I didn’t feel like I needed any extra applause because I was a girl doing the job.

In 2006/2007 it was rare to see any females on crew in Afghanistan, but by 2010/2011 things had changed massively and there was always a female on board at some point. It was great to see that shift.

You’ve been quite open about having PTSD when you left the RAF following a neck injury in 2019. Can you tell us about that?
It wasn’t until lockdown during COVID-19 that I started suffering from PTSD. I didn’t really suffer with my mental health when I was serving – I think routinely getting shot at and seeing such disturbing things, the trauma was normalised. But it all unravelled during lockdown – when the music stopped and suddenly the world got really quiet, it started to hit me. I suffered badly with insomnia – my brain would just keep going through emergency drills that I kept going over and over in my head when I was trying to sleep, and it just wouldn’t quieten down. I knew I was in a bad way mentally during the summer in 2020. I didn’t call anyone as they had their own stuff to deal with during the pandemic, and I didn’t want to be a burden. But it got too much – I was suicidal, took a massive overdose and ended up in intensive care. I was very lucky to recover from it.

I ended up seeking support from different charities, including Combat Stress, which the RAF Benevolent Fund has provided grants towards. The Fund also provided relationship counselling for my partner and I while I was serving in Afghanistan. I’m so grateful for the help I’ve received. I now deliver motivational talks for those in the military around the subject of mental health and have released a book about my experiences.

I used to think my uniform defined me and it was only when I took the uniform off and felt pretty invisible I broke. I realised afterwards that we define the uniform – they may be the clothes we wear but it’s the person wearing them that is the important thing.

Why is International Women’s Day important to you?
I never used to understand the reason for International Women’s Day, but more recently I’ve realised that it’s not necessarily about showing how great we women are, it’s about setting an example to those who haven’t got the freedom and opportunities to live their lives as they want to. We, in the Western World, are very privileged to have the freedom of choice and a voice, and I think it’s important to give hope to those who don’t have the same.

It's also important for young women and children to know that the RAF is an excellent career path – if you’re bold, brave and trust in yourself, it could be perfect job for you.