Item of the Month From David Gray

This month we look at a propaganda leaflet that was dropped over Britain by the RAF. We usually think of the RAF dropping leaflets over Germany and other axis occupied territories, but they also carried out ‘Nickel’ operations (‘Nickeling’), over this country. Nickel being the codename for missions where RAF bombers dropped propaganda leaflets.

During Malvern’s War Weapons Week, held from May 10 to May 17, 1941, the RAF dropped thousands of these aerial propaganda leaflets over the town. The leaflets, dropped on the first day of the savings week, were used as a psychological and promotional tool to encourage citizens to buy government war bonds and support local national savings campaigns. Malvern’s target was £120,000.

The airborne drops typically featured a message addressed specifically to the citizens of the hosting town. 

Another example of an air drop was during Bournemouth’s War Weapons Week. After Alderman Little had finished his speech, expressing his satisfaction with the amount lent, three Spitfires gave a display of formation flying and aerobatics, then a Lysander aircraft showered thousands of leaflets over the centre of the town. That leaflet read: 

''A message to Bournemouth from the Royal Air Force. To the citizens of Bournemouth. The Royal Air Force is watching with great interest your War Weapons Week. Lend your money to the utmost as we are lending our full support to you. We're banking on Bournemouth, too!"

These leaflet campaigns were combined with military parades, tank displays, formation flybys, and civic competitions to drum up morale and boost fundraising. The funds raised during these weeks often went toward purchasing presentation aircraft—like Spitfires—or naval vessels for the armed forces.

The badge on the right was another often used method which Malvern used to promote its War Weapons Week campaign. Clearly, the tank illustrated was a figment of the designer's over-active imagination!