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In probably one of the best known and most widely told stories of World War II, 19 Lancaster bombers of 617 Squadron, led by Wing Commander Guy Gibson, raided the great hydroelectric dams of western Germany in May 1943. Each Lancaster was equipped with the revolutionary bouncing bomb designed by the inventor Barnes Wallis. Designed to skip over the surface of the water, the bombs rotated at 500 rpm. They had to be dropped at a speed of 240 miles an hour and were set to explode while sinking to the base of the dam's retaining wall. It took five attempts to breach the Moehne Dam. Gibson then led the three remaining Lancasters to attack the Eder Dam. The unleashed floodwaters inundated the Ruhr valley below, killing thousands and causing German industry to grind to a halt. Eight of the 19 aircraft involved in the raid failed to return to base. Wing Commander Gibson, only 24 at the time of the mission, was awarded the Victoria Cross. He was killed in action 16 months later. In 1954 the raid was immortalized in "The Dambusters", starring Michael Redgrave and Richard Todd. A box office success, the film has become a classic, the music score being one of the best known of all time.
About the Author
Jonathan Falconer has written widely on RAF Bomber Command during the Second World War. His published works on the subject include Stirling at War (1991), RAF Bomber Airfields of World War Two (1992) Stirling Wings (1995), Bomber Command in Fact, Film and Fiction (Sutton,(1997), and The Bomber Command Handbook 1939-1945 )Sutton, 1998), Jonathan lives in Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire
In probably one of the best known and most widely told stories of World War II, 19 Lancaster bombers of 617 Squadron, led by Wing Commander Guy Gibson, raided the great hydroelectric dams of western Germany in May 1943. Each Lancaster was equipped with the revolutionary bouncing bomb designed by the inventor Barnes Wallis. Designed to skip over the surface of the water, the bombs rotated at 500 rpm. They had to be dropped at a speed of 240 miles an hour and were set to explode while sinking to the base of the dam's retaining wall. It took five attempts to breach the Moehne Dam. Gibson then led the three remaining Lancasters to attack the Eder Dam. The unleashed floodwaters inundated the Ruhr valley below, killing thousands and causing German industry to grind to a halt. Eight of the 19 aircraft involved in the raid failed to return to base. Wing Commander Gibson, only 24 at the time of the mission, was awarded the Victoria Cross. He was killed in action 16 months later. In 1954 the raid was immortalized in "The Dambusters", starring Michael Redgrave and Richard Todd. A box office success, the film has become a classic, the music score being one of the best known of all time.
About the Author
Jonathan Falconer has written widely on RAF Bomber Command during the Second World War. His published works on the subject include Stirling at War (1991), RAF Bomber Airfields of World War Two (1992) Stirling Wings (1995), Bomber Command in Fact, Film and Fiction (Sutton,(1997), and The Bomber Command Handbook 1939-1945 )Sutton, 1998), Jonathan lives in Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire
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