Freeman Dyson & OR in WWII
 

Freeman Dyson has written an excellent article for Technology Review on OR in Bomber Command during WWII. Well worth a read. :ok:

A Failure of Intelligence
Prominent physicist Freeman Dyson recalls the time he spent developing analytical methods to help the British Royal Air Force bomb German targets during World War II.

Interesting stuff. Freeman Dyson is probably best known as a Nuclear engineer par excellence, particulary in focussing atomic explosions - hence his brainchild the "Orion", a 3000 tonne 1950's spaceship powered by ejecting A-Bombs out of the back and using focussed blast waves to hit a plate attached to the ship by a huge spring. Google it, it was scary-mad-brilliant!

I recently bought a book written in the 1970s called Disturbing the Universe by Morgan Freeman for about 35p in a charity shop. I knew of him from the connections with Rudolf Peierls and Richard Feynman.
There was a short chapter on his experiences in ORS at Bomber Command in WWII. I was really surprised with his findings concerning, the low survival rates from damaged aircraft, the high level of LMF, the conclusion that eventually previous experience was not a deciding factor in survival and the reluctance of aircrews to relate their operational experiences.
I would recommend reading his views on the Bomber War.