May 17, 1943, seventy years ago today. British Lancasters, iconic airplanes of World War II, bombed Germany’s Möhne, Eder and Sorpe dams.
On May 17, in 1955, 12 years to the day after the raid, the famous movie premiered.
There is a Lancaster model airplane among my DVDs. When I watch The Dam Busters, I bring the airplane with me to the couch.
Few stories about World War II are as fabled as the ‘Dam Buster’ raid. The Ruhr dams of Germany were tempting targets. They supplied water and power to the industrial heartland of a country at war. Britain’s Royal Air Force was determined to attack them.
To hurdle anti-torpedo nets that protected the dams, Barnes Wallis, who designed airplanes and other useful gadgets for the RAF, invented the bouncing bomb. It looked like a drum. A motorized drive put a back spin on it. The bomb was designed to skip over the anti-torpedo nets, smack into the dam, sink against the dam wall and detonate 30 feet down.
To skip the bomb properly, the pilots had to fly exactly 60 feet above the lake, at exactly 220 miles per hour. They released the bomb exactly 425 yards from the dam wall. At night. Under intense anti-aircraft fire.
Today, few pilots can fly 4-engine airplanes that precisely without an autopilot.
The German gunners could see them clearly — each Lancaster had two spot lights ingeniously affixed so that from a height of exactly 60 feet the spots aligned on the water below. More precise than using altimeters.
Eight of 19 aircraft failed to return. Shot down over the target, downed en route or on the way home. They flew below treetop height most of the way, and at least one Lancaster crashed after running into Dutch power lines.
Squadron Commander Guy Gibson led the raid, which earned him the Victoria Cross. He was 24 years old. He was shot down and killed 16 months later.
Two dams were breached and 1,600 people on the ground lost their lives, including hundreds of prisoners-of-war used as forced labourers. The Germans repaired the dams within the year. Today the reservoirs are quiet recreation sites, and few of the people who live, sail or hike there know about the raid.
The 70th anniversary of the Dam Busters raid is spawning articles, model airplanes and documentaries.
I bought these magazines at a bookstore in Köln Hauptbahnhof, in Germany. The model airplane came from a Bangkok hobby shop.
In the 1955 movie The Dam Busters, Richard Todd starred as Guy Gibson. A former theatre actor, Todd was a paratrooper in World War II and jumped into Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 1944 on the ‘Pegasus Bridge’ mission. Later, he played the role of his D-Day commanding officer in another famous movie, ‘The Longest Day’.
Michael Redgrave did a delightful performance as Barnes Wallis, inventor of the bouncing bomb.
A young Robert Shaw played a supporting role.
Of course for aviation enthusiasts the stars are the airplanes. They used five Avro Lancasters in the movie. One actually came from 617 Squadron.
In 1955 there were no computer graphics. The airplanes were actually flown at hair-raising ultra-low altitudes. There is an absolutely gorgeous scene, shot in low light from a hilltop, of a Lancaster skimming a lake and then climbing just above the slope of the hill toward the camera.
Right after the shooting was over, all the Lancasters were sold to British Aluminum and melted down to scrap.
Many scenes were later copied in Memphis Belle and other WWII movies. Engine starts, chocks being pulled off the wheels, airplanes taxying out.
But the real gem is this: George Lucas ‘borrowed’ entire lines of dialogue from the film. Star Wars fans will spot them right away.
“How many guns do you think there are, Trevor?”
“I’d say there’s about ten guns, some in the field and some in the towers.”
“My goodness. It’s… It’s big, isn’t it? Can we really break THAT?”
“Let me know when you’re in position, I’ll draw the flak for you!”
“Down a bit, steady, 225, steady, 230, 225, steady, steady, … bomb gone!”
The scenes of Hopgood’s Lanc going down, the action switching back to Harris, Cochrane and Wallis waiting back at the base for reports… . The only thing Lucas didn’t do was make Princess Leia look like Michael Redgrave.
You can enjoy the dialogue and the attack scene here.
Today most pilots don’t know the difference between a Lancaster and a Diet Coke. These pretenders should throw their wings into a lake. I bet they can’t even make them skip.
Posted from Manila, May 17, 2013
70th Anniversary of the Dam Busters raid
Interesting links:
Of the 133 flight crew who flew on the raid, only 80 survived that night. Today, only 3 are still alive – one in the UK, one in New Zealand, one in Canada.
Someone finally did it. The soundtrack of Star Wars’ attack on the Death Star, overlaid on The Dam Busters! George Lucas was a big fan of the 1955 movie.
René, a Private Pilot, flew a Piper Cherokee over the Möhne, Eder and Sorpe dams a few weeks ago. Here are interesting photos of his aerial tour.
http://www.hebels.nl/flights/20130327-1/overview.htm
Christopher Toh, a Singapore writer, wrote a blog on Christmas Eve, 2009, on George Lucas’ liberal shoplifting of entire lines of dialogue from The Dam Busters into Star Wars.
http://blogs.todayonline.com/ratedg/2009/12/24/
Eric Coates’ “Dam Busters March” from the movie has become a British icon – even played at football matches in the UK.
http://home.comcast.net/~classicwarmovies/mp3_ww2/Dambusters,_The__March.mp3
And then the infamous Carlin Black Label TV commercial, with the German sentry goalkeeper on the dam.
Great post! One of my most unforgettable moments at the RAF Museum, Hendon, is standing in awe beneath the Lancaster B, R5868 PO-S, better known as, S for Sugar.
I had the very aircraft as a 1:72 scale model when I was a kid so seeing the real thing, well, you know that feeling very well. And there it was, with the very quotation as depicted on the model: “NO ENEMY PLANE WILL FLY OVER THE REICH TERRITORY” – Herman Goering and proudly displaying 137 completed missions in yellow.
It is the oldest surviving Lanc and was operated by the RAAF 463 and 467 Squadrons and was based at RAF Waddington.
You forgot to mention that No. 617 Sqn is still an active unit, operating the Tornado GR4.
I’m still hoping that Peter Jackson will realize his dream to do a remake of “The Dam Busters.” Like, he did build a full scale model: http://dambusters.files.wordpress.com/2012/12/002.jpg
Finally, here’s another link from the BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-22544568
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Jaime! Yes, 617 Squadron flies Tornados. Did you see the photo of the DVD “The Ultimate Dambusters Collection” behind the Lancaster model on my DVD shelf? It’s a documentary narrated by veterans of the raid, present-day pilots of 617 Squadron and RAF historians. The present-day Tornado pilots said they would have great difficulty flying that attack profile today, even with all the computerized navigational and flight management systems they had in the Tornado.
You of course know about the Red Arrows, the British aerobatic jet display team. Well, they are based at RAF Scampton, the base in Lincolnshire from which the 617 Squadron Lancasters took off for the dams, 70 years ago.
You’re not on Facebook, so go find someone who is and see these links that would interest you:
That’s the crew video of the Lanc that flew over the Derwent dam in Derbyshire, the same dam that the 1943 RAF pilots practices on. The video and the flight is part of the 70th anniversary commemoration. A resident in Germany posted a comment of how there was also a quiet commemoration at the Möhne dam, which is now a very serene recreational area.
The main Facebook page is here:
Glad you liked the article 🙂
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Tonet
Thanks for another great post, and for remembering the clever and brave actions of 617 Squadron those 70 years ago.
You’re right to point out that one of the survivors of the raid lives in New Zealand. In January this year that 93-year-old, Les Munro, did what he hadn’t done for around 70 years, and what very few people will ever do again: fly in a Mosquito. Catch the action here
http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/8197507/Magical-Merlins-in-a-flying-machine
and probably plenty of other places on the web. The formation over the capital’s harbour was quite a sight from my office window that day, and I was privileged to see the Mosquito’s spectacular flying display at the ‘Wings over Wairarapa’ airshow the following weekend. What is now the world’s only flying Mossie was beautifully restored for its American owner by a company in Auckland, who kindly let it be used for displays around New Zealand once it was finished. The plane is now flying in the US. Catch it if you can; it’s an object of great beauty.
New Zealand’s Sir Peter Jackson, of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit fame, has been planning a new version of The Dambusters movie and I understand he’ll be back on the project when he gets The Hobbit series out of the way. That’s certainly something to look forward to, but in the meantime the original Dambusters movie merits another look. Even given all the CGI we are used to these days, the sense of reality it generates is quite remarkable for its time.
Sir Peter has a real interest in military aviation, for example through The Vintage Aviator Ltd (http://thevintageaviator.co.nz/ and https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Vintage-Aviator-Collection/130953866975871 ). This company restores First World War planes with great authenticity, and makes new ones to original factory specifications with real attention to detail; they aren’t simply replicas. You could order a brand new Fokker Dreidecker, and write a ‘Red Baron’ blog post with a difference!
Sir Peter also chairs the trust that manages the Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre (http://www.omaka.org.nz/) just across Cook Strait from Wellington, which houses an impressive collection of First World War aircraft, many in flying condition. The Red Baron display is the centrepiece.
Sorry to have got off the Dambusters topic towards the end, but I hope it’s of interest.
Regards,
Andrew
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Andrew, what a joy to hear from you again! I watched The Dam Busters again with me son, recently. And on May 17 I did watch the documentary, The Ultimate Dam Busters. Truly worth revisiting these old aviation movies. They really don’t make them like that anymore.
I lost myself in that site, The Vintage Aviator. Been browsing it for hours now. Amazing!! And beautiful photography.
I am conflicted over when to visit NZ now. I always planned on going to Wings Over Wanaka, but now there is Wairarapa and Omaka. Too many things to do, too little time. Then I read that Omaka is in Marlborough, and then of course there are the wineries… .
Les Munro. You really wish people like that would live forever. The stories he must have! You saw them fly, from your office window?! Oh man. Legends going by.
Sir Peter Jackson. I hope they use a real Lancaster. Too much CGI just wouldn’t be right. But he should have a go at it. There is no downside to doing so.
If I ever get to Kiwi I will ask you for suggestions and tips. I have traveled all over the world and have never been there.
Thanks for the nice note, and the links!!
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You should see the Ice Pilots NWT show episode where they re-enact this dambuster thing on a canadian lake with a C47. 🙂
The episode should be available on bittorrent (that’s where I got it since it’s not available outside of Canada AFAIK).
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Hi Pat, I did see that episode, and another documentary about that flight, on the internet. I believe they used a C-54 or some other four-engine airplane? But I may be confused. I remember that they rehearsed it exhaustively, and did a lot of research, to be able to replicate the flight accurately.
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operation chastise : the Upkeep
yey!
there was only one tv station back then where i grew up in the sixties.
the station signs-off at midnight and comes back on-air at noon. regular
programming starts at 4. between noon and 4 is sort of station warm-up
time and all they ever show are re-runs of 1930s gangster movies if not
war movies. that’s how i got to know the likes of edward g. robinson,
humphrey bogart, machinegun kelly, al capone, and The Dam Busters
and Twelve O’Clock High to name a few.
good post tonet. made me read-up about the RAF Bomber Command.
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MY STORY:…. I DID A TEST RUN IN A LANCASTER BOMBER, GREENWOOD NOVA SCOTIA AS AN AIR CADET. (UP TILL THEN IT WAS DUAL ENGINES ONLY), AS WE WERE CRANKING UP THE MERLIN ENGINES TO SYNC, I HEARD THIS AWFUL CREAKING NOISE. I SHOUTED….. WAS IS THAT DREADFUL NOISE. INSTRUCTOR SAID…. THIS LANCASTER WAS MADE OF CANADIAN PLYWOOD (NO STEEL OR ALUM AVAILABLE, IN 1940.
INSTRUCTOR SAYS ”NOT TO WORRY SON, THEY USED SCREWS, NOT NAILS”……LOL
WILLIAM
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Roberts again. I enjoyed your film on Dam Busters. It was very well done,
I saw actual film footage while training as Air Cadet, RCAF Squadron 349 Campbellton, maybe 1954. It seems as though the Flak was a lot worse than was depicted.
But then time does distort my memory, somewhat….LOL
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Tonet
That very Mosquito that I posted about is now for sale: http://hamptonroads.com/2013/06/va-beach-museum-owner-selling-historic-plane-collection. I’m sure it will find a good home somewhere.
Andrew
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Hi Tonet
Sir Peter Jackson says he will get on to making the Dambusters movie:
“There is only a limited span I can abide people driving me nuts asking when I’m going to do that project. So I’ll have to do it.”
He’s going to give it a real Kiwi spin, he says here: http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/film/10391699/Peter-Jackson-to-tackle-Kiwi-story
Regards,
Andrew
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[…] https://tonetcarlo.wordpress.com/2013/05/17/the-dam-busters/ […]
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Hi Tonet
Here’s an article on one of the surviving ‘Dam Busters’, Les Munro of New Zealand. Still looking after his former mates at 95 years old:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11410905
Andrew
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Thank you, Andrew! Always good tobheqr from you. Ironically I am in Wellington today for a meeting. Always good to be in New Zealand.
— Tonet
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The last surviving pilot of the Dambusters raid, Les Munro of New Zealand, died this week. He was 96 years old, and had been in remarkable shape until his short and recent illness.
The article I linked to above was about him planning to donate his medals and log books to raise money to maintain the Bomber Command Memorial in London. In the event the British philanthropist Lord Ashcroft, a keen student of military history, made an equivalent donation to support the memorial upkeep, so Les could give the medals to the Museum of Transport and Technology in Auckland, New Zealand. In April this year Les was at the museum with the Prime Minister, John Key, to present the medals to the museum where they are on display next to a Lancaster. He was flying in a Mosquito just two years ago, as I’ve noted earlier, and I have read he was up in an Anson earlier this year.
After 58 WW2 combat missions over Europe, a number that very few survived, Les returned to New Zealand to farm sheep and serve his community. He lived a quiet life, somewhat embarrassed about the attention given by his Dambusters connection, according to his friends. He died peacefully, well loved by his family.
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Hullo, Andrew. Sorry for the VERY late reply. Yes, I saw the news item, and was saddened by it. He had sold his medals off, hadn’t he, to charity? They’re all gone now.
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Hi Tonet
Good to hear from you. Les Munro was going to sell his medals to raise money for the upkeep of the (new) Bomber Command memorial in London. When word got out about this, British military history enthusiast and philanthropist Lord Ashcroft brokered a deal in which he gave 75,000 pounds to the RAF Benevolent Fund for the memorial’s upkeep so the medals could be displayed at the Museum of Transport and Technology in Auckland, New Zealand. That’s a good outcome all round.
Lord Ashcroft brought the medals back to New Zealand himself, and they were presented to the museum at a ceremony with Les Munro and none other than the Prime Minister present: link here http://www.motat.org.nz/about-motat/news-media/les-munro-presents-medals-to-motat/
So, next time you visit the Lancaster at MOTAT, you can see Les Munro’s medals and logbooks.
Cheers,
Andrew
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That’s really thikning out of the box. Thanks!
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