The Incredible Story Of The Dambusters Raid (WW2 Documentary)
On 16th May 1943 a squadron of 19 Lancaster Bombers took off from RAF Dcampton in Lincolnshire headed for occupied Europe. Their targets were a series of dams powering the industrial heartlands of nazi Germany. Armed with a brand new weapon, codenamed 'upkeep', better known today as the 'bouncing bomb', they achieved the seemingly impossible. Breaching two major dams and damaging a third, they caused serious damage to the Ruhr region. It was perhaps one of the most audacious raids of WW2, but was not without cost. In this video we explore the story of the men who went down in history as The Dambusters.
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A special thanks to DCS Community Lancaster for letting us use their DCS footage. Check out their full video about Dambusters: • DCS Lancaster Dambuste...
And a big thank you to Jott Gee for a lot of great drone footage of the Möhnedam and Sorpedam. / @jottgee-youtube
Written References:
- Breaking the German Dams, by Dr. Robert Owen: www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/Break...
- Henry Maudslay: Dam Buster, by Dr. Robert Owen
General Sources:
- Imperial War Museum Sound Archive (IWMSA)
- US National Archives (NARA)
- National Library of Scotland Image Collection (NLS)
- Australian War Memorial Image Archive (AWM)
- War Diaries of the Battalions (NMP)
- British Newspaper Archive (BNA)
- The National Archives, Kew (TNA)
- Google Earth Pro & Web Versions
- Maptiler Pro (Desktop Version)
Image Sources:
- Findagrave.com
- Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-114-0073-25 / Plenik, Bruno / CC-BY-SA 3.0
- Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-637-4192-20 / Schalber / CC-BY-SA 3.0
- Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-637-4193-17 / Schalber / CC-BY-SA 3.0
- Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-637-4194-05A / Schalber / CC-BY-SA 3.0
- Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-637-4194-13A / Schalber / CC-BY-SA 3.0
- Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-724-0135-16 / Briecke / CC-BY-SA 3.0
- Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-774-0011-34 / Hubmann, Hanns / CC-BY-SA 3.0
- Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-786-0327-19 / Otto / CC-BY-SA 3.0
- Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-C0212-0043-012 / CC-BY-SA 3.0
- Image Flying Lancaster: Martin Pettitt CC BY 2.0
- 3D Model Avro Lancaster: helijah
Credits:
- Research: Dan Hill
- Script & Narration: Dan Hill
- Editing: Shane Greer
- Thumbnail Design: Linus Klassen
- Image Colourisation: Doug Banks
- Music & Sound Effects: Epidemic Sounds
Had the pleasure of spending 10 minutes with Les Munro at an airshow in Tauranga NZ in 2012 - he received the DFC and remained with 617 as a Flight Commander till the end and returned to farm in the Bay of Plenty and served also as a Local District Councillor - eventually passing in 2018 as the last remaining Dambuster pilot - it is not often you get to meet and talk to real heroes. Lest We Forget! Excellent doc - well done!
Was Johnny Johnson who passed last in 2022 but all incredible people
My dad crossed the… Enemy Coast… 32 times as an m/u gunner in a 101 Sqn Lancaster Bomber between March - August 1944. I have his log book. On more than one occasion he mentions the intense flack.
My Dad joined up as a wireless operator/Air gunner but it turned out he was slightly colour blind on blues and greens. Instead he became an LAC class 1, instrument maker. Your Dad, like all those crew members, was a brave man!! People like him should never be forgotten. Dave.
Legend ! 💛👊
He was lucky to survive. My Dad was a pilot and air mech well before the War. Fortunately he was held up on the Com Air Training Plan here in Canada so was late to join Bomber Command otherwise I'm sure there wouldn't be a me.
Love this channel. It's one of the best, most thorough , and thought provoking you'll find dealing with these topics. ! Brilliant stuff. 👊💛👍
This has quickly become one of my favorite channels. Excellent work once again! We need videos like this so we don't forget and the next generation learn about the great sacrifices that were made. I have always loved the Dambusters story and how they basically skipped it to the dam like we did with stones when we were kids. I wonder if that was part of the inspiration.
"Such a cruel war must not be repeated." Johannes Dörwald
Another superb documentary! Thanks so much.
I visited the Eder Dam in December, 2019. There was hardly anyone there and the quietness added to mood, knowing what happened there in 1943. Seeing the approach route over the castle and the hard left turn afterwards, it’s a wonder they were able to hit the dam at all.
Comment for the algorithm excellent video
Well done, worth a second watch or even a third.
Thanks John!
Great video. The narration, maps, images from today and the past, and voiceovers are all excellent. One of the things I appreciate most about your videos is how you discuss the human costs. My heart sank when I heard about how many civilians were killed and the stories of the airmen. Frederick Tees' story broke my heart. I can't imagine the pain he felt for decades. Great work again.
Thanks very much for watching Alex, much appreciated.
@@BattleGuideVT You're welcome! You do such a great job and I appreciate your videos :). Have a nice day.
The thing that gets me is that so many of these selfless brave young men never survived to realise their efforts were not in vain. Respect to them all and those who survived.
Civilian casualties are a tragic inevitability of war. Thank you for making this documentary
Amazing post, thank you.
Great video , mate.
A good friend of my mothers was an RNZAF pilot Noel Toms, ( he flew Wellingtons in Egypt during the war) one of his mates was Les Monro.
Superb description of the operation, now widely acknowledged to have been a great strategic success. Many thanks for this video. In many other accounts of Operation Chastise, the planned attack on the Ennepe dam is given little mention.
Wonderful recount of the events! I'll let you off on the clip of the Manchester at take-off.
Great video 👍
I enjoyed the video. However, you may wish to check the casualty figures. My records show 53 KIA and 3 POW from the 8 aircraft (each having 7 crew members). To mark the 80th Anniversary of the raid this year, I fulfilled I promise I made to Johnny Johnson on the 78th Anniversary. Starting at Gibson’s grave, I cycled 700 miles to all 4 dams via all of the crash sites and the graves of those lost.
Damn good video 👍
Nice documentary only one minor issue. Lancasters on this raid had a crew of 7 (the normal complement) so 56 men never returned from the raid although 3 of them survived as POW. Fraser and Burcher from Hopgood's aircraft and Tees from Ottley's, The 617 Squadron aircraft prefix code for the raid was AJ.
Joseph Charles "Big Joe" McCarthy, DSO, DFC*, CD (31 August 1919 - 6 September 1998) was an American aviator who served with the Royal Canadian Air Force in Bomber Command during World War II.[1][2][3] He is best known as the commander and pilot of Lancaster AJ-T ("T-Tommy") in Operation Chastise, the "Dambuster" raid of 1943.
Hey Dan and the battle guide team great video I really thought the amount of smart designers of the upkeep bomb was fascinating as probably many more different types of bombs descended. I also felt in my opinion the attack was successful from a military perspective germany may had been able to turn tables again producing more aircraft if it wasn’t for attack. And i just think if this attack wasn’t conducted the Germans would had still had high morale. Anyway good vid and I think this attack had a positive impact both in military technology and in WW2
great piece.
Why didnt you use the codes used or is that due to pc
One of the reasons that debriefing was so important , areas of concentrated Flak and Searchlights could be mapped , and avoided in future missions . The section tasked to attack the Sorpe Dam crossed the coast at the wrong place , due to navigation error . So were all shot down. As it happens it would have made no difference as the bouncing mines were ineffective against earthen dams. Nuremberg march 30th 1944 , the RAF planners ignored their own rules and decided to fly straight to the target without any feints or spooths . The result was a disaster with 106 bombers being shot down.
Another banger
Was it worth the cost?
Re upload? It seems more refined and re done
Hi Yes, a re-upload, though with some improvements - we put a post explaining about it in the community tab :(
another 1
Not too sorry for those on the ground.. they chose total war and paid the price.. there are no innocents when this type of war needs won .
God bless the British and one American flyers. They are the only people I commemorate.
617 Squadron RAF was made up of numerous aircrew nationalities. Royal Air Force (RAF), Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) and one American.
^Gibson's ...mascot dog. his black Jabrador run down at the guard entrance of RAF Scampton on afternoon of 16 May 153, eve of the mission & was called, :NIGGER" a perfectly acceptable name in 1943, as well as the code-word on the R/T for the Mohne Dam breach is ,hated by our 2020 wokista's.R,I.P ALL.