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Interview with Johnny Johnson. Three
George ‘Johnny’ Johnson gives his opinion on Paul Brickhill's book and the 1955 film of the same name (The Dambusters). He provides his thoughts on various topics, including Winston Churchill, the campaign to award medals to Bomber Command and the…
Interview with Johnny Johnson. One
George ‘Johnny’ Johnson was the bomb aimer in a Lancaster AJ-T flown by Joe McCarthy during Operation Chastise 16th of May 194. He discusses the attack on the dams and the events before and after the attack. He describes training over the Derwent Dam…
Interview with John James Smith
John Smith grew up near Corby, surrounded by aerodromes, so was used to the sight of aircraft. He observed Lancaster aircraft practising for the Dambusters raid over Eye Brook Reservoir. He also witnessed glider practice and was impressed by the…
Interview with John 'Snogger' Watkins
John Watkins was working in retail in Rotherham and in 1939 he joined 218 Squadron ATC. He joined the RAF in February 1942 at RAF Cardington, and did his initial training at RAF Blackpool. In December 1942 he did his wireless training at RAF…
Interview with Helmut Köhler
Helmut Köhler (b. 1928) recalls his wartime experience as Luftwaffenhelfer. He provides a first-hand account of two attacks on Kassel, the first on the 22 October 1943 and the second in March 1944. He describes his time spent inside the air-raid…
Interview with Elaine Green
Elaine’s uncle worked as an armourer at RAF Scampton. He first joined the Royal Flying Corps before the organisation was renamed the RAF. He worked with Barnes Wallis at the time of the design of the bouncing bomb. He sustained an injury which the…
Interview with Cyril Gosling
Cyril Gosling trained as an armourer at Kirby in Blackpool and was first posted to 49 Squadron where he worked on the guns and turrets. As part of his role he would go on flights in the bombers to check the accuracy of the guns by firing at drogues.…
Interview with Audrey Teasdale
Audrey left school aged 14 and began work as a clerical assistant for a tailoring firm in Leeds, before moving into furniture sales. She was 23 when the war started and was conscripted on 15 December 1942, electing to join the Women's Auxiliary Air…
Interview with Alma Leedham
Alma Leedham grew up in London and worked for Hawker aircraft on the Hurricane at the start of the war. She later trained as a driver in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force, and served at RAF Scampton driving tractors taking bombs to the aircraft. Alma…
History of Lancaster B.III ED 945
Ordered 1941 and built by A.V. Roe at Chadderton near Manchester as one of a batch of 620 between November 1943 and June 1943. Twenty of this batch either side of ED 932 (Gibson's aircraft) were modified as type 464 provisioning to enable Barnes…
Hampdens, Wimpeys and Barbed Wire
Bomber Command wartime memoirs 1939-45 by Ted Allison. He completed 35 bomber operations as wireless operator/air gunner 1941-43, which he described as being looked down upon. The introduction describes his role as a Wop/Ag and how they're replaced…
H Jack Lazenby DFC
Harold Jack Lazenby's autobiography.
Guy Gibson's Log Book Extract
An extract from Guy's logbook for May 1943. It ends on May 16 with 'Awarded VC'.
Fröndenberg
Vertical reconnaissance photograph of flooding following Operation Chastise. Captioned 'Frodenberg [Fröndenberg] 13 miles down stream from the Mohne Dam showing the flood water after the Dambuster raid on on 16th 17th May 1943 photo taken by F/O F…
Flight Lieutenant John Vere Hopgood DFC & Bar
Head and shoulders portrait of an RAF officer wearing tunic with pilot's brevet and peaked cap. Captioned 'F/Lt John Vere Hopgood DFC & Bar, 106 and 617 (Dambusters) Squadron, Shot down while bombing the Moehne [sic] Dam 16/17 May 1943'.
Exhibition of Dambuster Pilots Wings
Top centre a title 'this photograph was taken the day after the attack on the dams of [..] pilots who took off for the dams only eleven returned'. Top centre a photograph of twelve pilots in two rows labelled 'Back row: Flt Lt Townsend, Flt Lt…
Evidence in Camera Vol 4 No 5
A magazine of aerial photographs covering aerial views of tanks, the Eder dam after the attack by 617 squadron, Kiel, Trondheim and Heroya harbours under attack, industrial areas in Hanover, railway centres, Italian airfields and aircraft, a dummy…
Evidence in Camera Vol 3 No 9
A magazine of aerial photographs covering bombing of Kiel shipyards, the Potez aircraft factory, flooding after the Moehne dam was breached, repairs to the Sorpe dam, bombing of Heligoland and Dune, the port of La Pallice, the port of Naples, damage…
Evidence in Camera Vol 3 No 10
A magazine of aerial photography covering anti-invasion preparations at the Hague, anti-tank obstacles at Scheveningen, flooding from the Mohne Dam, U-boat bases and port damage, factories, railway stations, camouflaged storage tanks, marshalling…
Edersee dam rebuilt
A post-war colour photograph of the rebuilt dam at Edersee.
Edersee dam breached
A photograph taken not long after the breaching of the Edersee dam.
Edersee dam
The remains of Edersee dam after the bombing. Repairs have commenced.
Edersee dam
A view of the dam without the breach.
Eder Dam
Vertical aerial photograph with two images of the Eder Dam captioned 'Photographs of the Eder Dam taken on 18th May 1943, thirty hours after the attack by 617 sqdn. Taken by F/O D G Scott in Spitfire PRX1 serial EN411 of 542 sqdn. (double photo…
Eder Dam
Reconnaissance photograph showing lake on left with breached dam half way up on left. Farmland fields top right. Captioned between page 47-48 of 1956 Memoir '[heading] 617 Squadron [/heading]
[caption - written vertically on LHS of page presumably…
[caption - written vertically on LHS of page presumably…