Below decks, and amid the heat and noise of the engine room, only one woman was making waves. Victoria Drummond was the first ever female marine engineer and first British woman to serve as chief engineer. She went to sea in 1922 and joined the P&O Group ship MULBERA in 1927, as 5th Engineer.
After five voyages, and glowing references from MULBERA,Victoria went ashore, intent on obtaining her Chief Engineer’s certificate. But here she faced her greatest challenge. She sat the Board of Trade examination 30 times before one examiner confided that passing was a problem of gender, not competence…
Undeterred, Drummond returned to sea on board BONITA, where her skill and courage proved lifesaving in WW2. Under attack, from a German bomber, she single-handedly kept the engines going, saving both ship and crew. She was awarded the Lloyds War Medal for bravery at sea and made MBE in 1941.
