Unable to view the Lancaster story because I don't trust Flash. (And nor should you).
But the James Ward Wellington one is stirring enough.
If you scroll down the wiki page below, and visit the link showing the flak damage to the Wellington you get a good idea what the Kiwi did to earn his VC.
Notice there's minimal scorching around the leaking fuel pipe, so he must've been pretty quick getting out of the burning bomber for his nocturnal wing walk.
How thick would a "dinghy cord" be?
Thinner than your little-finger I suspect.
I wonder if he removed his parachute to get out, surely he must have done to get through the tiny observation hatch. And he was dragging a canvas sheet too.
Throttled back airspeed would have been what... 150 knots? Perhaps the pilot got it lower using flaps.
I particularly like the quotes from Ward's conversation with Churchill when he visited Downing Street for his gonging.
James Allen Ward VC