A Dams raid question...

[Champagne Anyone?]

Just a quickie,

A nephew is writing an essay for his school on the night of the 16/17 may '43 and the famous Dams raid...

Does anyone know where I can locate for him, on the web, the approximate timings for the raids and the unfortunate losses of the aircraft and crew? I have tried googleing but can't seem to find anything at all...





If anyone can assist, it might just save me from a trip to the Lawrence room....

Thanks, Champers....

[airborne_artist]

http://www.raf.mod.uk/history_old/dambusters.html

[xraf]

http://www.war-experience.org/history/keyaspects/damsraid0543/pagethree.asp

Google is your friend!

Xraf:ok:

[airborne_artist]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Chastise

[ZH875]

Is this (http://homepage.ntlworld.com/julie.bell102/mohne_attack.html) any use

Or have a look in the Operations Record Book on this (http://www.dambusters.org.uk/about.htm) site.

And finally this (http://www.cwgc.org/admin/files/The%20Dams%20Raid.pdf)

Just google for "operation chastise"

[Jimmy Macintosh]

http://www.dambusters.org.uk/

Fascinating read about Mr Gibson. I didn't know that he flew on the wing of a lot of the guys as they approached the dams to draw fire.

[Occasional Aviator]

slightly beyond the scope of the essay, could I heartily recommend Guy Gibson's book "Enemy Coast Ahead"? A cracking read from many points of view - not least to see how little the attitude of RAF aircrew has changed...

[davaar lad]

Champers,
I guess if you are in the far north west it may be a bit superfluous but there is some good stuff at the Brooklands Museum, esp Barnes Wallis (if not on the internet then an old fashioned letter may yeild results, they are v helpful).
Also try a google earth sat pic of the dams now, when I flew over them you could still see the patches.

rgds

SMK

[Trumpet_trousers]

Also try a google earth sat pic of the dams now, when I flew over them you could still see the patches

No need for Google, or flying:

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d1/trumpet_trousers/Eder_Dam.jpg

The damage to the wall of the Eder Dam is clearly evident, even in 2005 when I took this picture - they're still working on it too!! Note the lack of sluices/arches about 1/3rd of the way down the dam wall towards the lefthand side, and the different coloured bricks (red) used in the upper arches in the same area. Note the castle in the background - Schloss Waldeck, which was used on the run-in to the target.

[BEagle]

Great picture, TT!

I remember that castle well! On the 40th anniversary I was flying HM's mighty Phantom (not very well) and, for once, happened to be in the right place at the right time!

So we flew past the castle, down to 250 ft, across the dam, then climbed out. Seemed like fun, so did it again. Then another jet joined us, so we did a pairs flypast... I recall that there were people waving (I think:bored:) from the castle. Then home for tea at Gutersloh.

Mentioned it to the SNAVO when we were chatting later and he went white. He dug out something called 'Manuel de vol a basse altitude' (not something we air defenders had bothered with before) and pointed out that we weren't supposed to use the dams as a turning point or overfly them at low level.

"Good job we didn't tell him about saying hello to the Moehne Dam on the way home, then!" I remarked to my nav after he'd gone.

But no-one ever complained!

[PPRuNe Pop]

This gives dates, times, crews and reports. You should find everything you need in this one place.

http://www.dambusters.org.uk/docs/recordbook.pdf

[Trumpet_trousers]

I've got a couple of pictures of the Moehne Dam that also show where the breach occurred, I'll post them later tonight.
The thing that struck me in comparing the Moehne and Eder attacks is that - defensive aspects aside - the Eder was the more difficult to hit, given the topography surrounding it, which, amongst other things, meant that the breach occurred off-centre as shown in my photo above.
Standing on the wall of the Eder for the first time on 17 May 1993, I could only wonder how a successful attack was achieved exactly 50 years ago to the day (night,) at 60 feet, in the dark, and with basic (by today's standards) navigation equipment.:D

[Pilot Pacifier]

Here's a few pics I took a couple of years ago from the mighty Wokka...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v331/_79_Vortex/S1.jpg
The Sorpe

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v331/_79_Vortex/M1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v331/_79_Vortex/M2.jpg
And the Moehne Dam

[Green Flash]

Blimey, that takes me back! Damn:} good chip shop at the northern end of the Mohne as I remember. Went for a quick blat up on a Sunday afternoon on my mates K150 along with bazillions of other motorads.:ok:

[ponks]

Brilliant photos:D:D:D:D

[Champagne Anyone?]

All I can say is thank you all very much!

I passed on the link to this page and I now keep receiving texts, not in yoof speak I must add, from Sam my nephew, saying how brilliant the people on Pprune are to help him with his project.

Once again a big thank you, there is so much more information here than I could ever have hoped for. You have helped to a young lad very very happy!!

:ok: :D:D:D

[chiglet]

Elvington [Yorkshire Aviation Museum] Has a dedicated building to the Dams Raid.[Including the "Alternative" Bombsights...which are "Hands On"]
watp,iktch

[Trumpet_trousers]

As promised earlier:
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d1/trumpet_trousers/108-0860_IMG.jpg

The area where the breach occurred is clearly visible between the towers (the lighter grey area.) At least one of the towers had a defensive gun on top of it.
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d1/trumpet_trousers/108-0864_IMG.jpg
View from below - perhaps the duck offers some scale to the image!

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d1/trumpet_trousers/108-0896_IMG.jpg
Ennepe Dam, one of the secondary targets for the raid.

Finally:
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d1/trumpet_trousers/108-0889_IMG.jpg
Sorpe Dam graphic, perhaps showing why it was more difficult to breach than the other 2 primary targets, being of a different construction type. Mention is made of the Dams raid in the 4th paragraph: During the Second World War the Dam was significantly damaged by air strikes, and was prone to leaks. These leaks have since been eliminated through several extensive restructuring measures :ok:

[angels]

Some cracking photos and memories there!

Thanks very much to all. :ok:

[Wessex Boy]

A Friend of mine is the Nephew of David Maltby, Dambuster.

His brother has just published a book detailing the Raid from David's perspective and is a very good read. It also tries to evaluate what is fact and what is RAF PR.

Please see this webiste for details:
http://www.breakingthedams.com/

[incubus]

This is kind of on-topic...

I remember once seeing a painting (or a print of one) of 617Sqn Lancasters making one of the dam raids, with a second wave of 617Sqn Tornados turning in for their run. Cracking picture.

Did I dream it or can someone point to a possible source?
Ta.

[Out Of Trim]

I can only add a picture of one of the bouncing bombs - on display at the Brooklands Museum.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/Barry.Humphries/SDQfJlUXBDI/AAAAAAAADgQ/bz8AZZGE-Pc/s800/DSC_4106.JPG

[ninja-lewis]

This is kind of on-topic...

I remember once seeing a painting (or a print of one) of 617Sqn Lancasters making one of the dam raids, with a second wave of 617Sqn Tornados turning in for their run. Cracking picture.

Did I dream it or can someone point to a possible source?
Ta.

This one (http://www.military-art.com/mall/more.php?ProdID=1499) maybe?

[Green Flash]

Wasn't it Hugh Trevor-Roper who was Gibsons gunner?

[Eagle402]

Green Flash,

Hugh Trevor-Roper is a military historian I believe. The Trevor-Roper in Guy Gibson's crew shared the surname but was Richard Algernon Dacre....

If ever a name was born to serve in the RAF that surely takes the biscuit.

Full crew :

http://www.thedambusters.org.uk/aj-g.html

[incubus]

Right theme but not the same picture.

My misty memory is telling me that the one I saw has a reservoir in the middle distance beyond some rolling hills with a lancaster left to right low over the water on an attack run. This side of the hills a pair of tonkas heads "into" the image over the hills to join their squadron mate.

It may have been on the wall of a mess but I saw it once and it made me smile.
I'll keep looking.

[GOLF_BRAVO_ZULU]

That link does point to a very nice picture, though. The accompanying blurb writer does need to swat up on his/her geography!


A Tornado follows a Lancaster over the Derwentwater Dam

[mighluss]

A couple of photos of the 65th. anniversary, appeared recently on a.net:

http://www.airliners.net/photo/UK---Air/Avro-683-Lancaster/1356178/L/

http://www.airliners.net/photo/UK---Air/Avro-683-Lancaster/1356214/L/

[Green Flash]

Eagle - Sir, I stand corrected! Thanks. It is a cracking moniker. I wonder if they were related?

[Exnomad]

Richard Todd was interviewed on the BBC program, and was modest enough not to mention that he did his bit on D DAY.

[steamchicken]

was starke Undichtigkeiten zur Folge hatte

"...which led to a serious loss of watertight integrity." I suppose you could say that!