jindabyne,
Many thanks :ok:

In that case, not for the first time, I have to agree with Mr Bumble's assessment of the law.

(And many of its practitioners ;))

Programme repeated again tonight.

ITV 1

22:35 Bomber Command

ITV Plus 1

23:35 Bomber Command

Also available on ITV Player

Video - ITV Player

Allan125,

I am currently away from home in Germany (again) and don't have ready access to my reference but I am sure that Frederick Taylor's 'Dresden, 13th February 1945' indicates that the Americans actually got lost and bombed Prague thinking they were over Dresden!

Also, Dresden (I visited it last year just before I went to Colditz) was bombed at the request of the Russians who wanted the place softened up as their troops advanced westwards. Churchill agreed, Harris complied, Dresden was bombed, Churchill denied, Harris accused, Bomber Command sentenced! Dresden had not actually featured on the 'Tgt List' until that Russian request!

Foldie;)

jindabyne:
Who Betrayed the Bomber Boys? on Vimeo
Many thanks. I would commend this very comprehensive programme about the genesis and development of the RAF Bombing Campaign in WWII. It portrays the guilty men as Churchill and his Ministers (agreed) and Robin Gibb as one of the few people prepared to stand up and be counted as a champion of Harris's Old Lags and end the 67 year wait for a National Memorial to their 55573 colleagues who paid the ultimate price (agreed).
That here and there Stephen Fry makes the odd dubious claim in his commentary is as nought against those two great truths.
Time that Churchill was outed as the great betrayer.
Time that the late Robin Gibb was commemorated and honoured by the Royal Air Force for the essential part he played in reminding us all of the debt we owe those so very young men.

Hi Foldie

I agree that some of the Americans bombed Prague in error instead of Dresden - however, on page 316 of "Dresden" it states "The Eighth U.S. Army Air Force had originally been scheduled to go in ahead of the British against Dresden on February 13. The whims of the weather had changed that. Now they were going in after the British. This was not unusual. What was unusual was how much of the target city had already been wrecked - in the course of a single night - before the Americans even took to the air" which confirms what I wrote earlier.

I attended a very interesting talk on Dresden (and the book) by Frederick Taylor when the book was published - and purchased one that he signed for me - I also had a relation who flew on the Dresden op near to the end of his 34 op tour for 61 squadron, usually as a navigator in the Arawyn Davies crew, however on the Dresden op his pilot was F/O R J Palmer, and they were in LL843 one of the 34 Lancasters to complete 100 ops (or more).

LL843 is believed to have completed 118 ops by the end of the european war, but this may include "Manna" or "Exodus" sorties.

As the Arawyn Davies crew they had also flown in LL843 on their first op (to the Russelsheim Opel works on 12/13 August '44) and had been attacked by two night fighters and it was also damaged by flak severely enough for it to be out of operation for several weeks being sent back to Avro's for repair and a refit.

Allan

Allan, Thanks. As I said I don't have the reference with me in Germany, so thanks for the update.

Foldie;)