The Dambusters Raids - The True Story
The story of the 'Dambusters' has passed through history into legend, inspiring one of the greatest of all World War II movies.
On May 16th 1943, nineteen Lancaster bombers took off from England's Scampton airfield. They carried 133 men and a top secret bomb load, code-named 'Upkeep'. Few knew of the existence of Royal Air Force 617 Squadron, and only a handful, including Winston Churchill, knew their purpose.
Britain's military planners had been working on a strategy to inflict huge destruction to the might of the Nazi war machine. If they could breach the dams in Germany's Ruhr Valley, the damage that would follow might destroy the factories producing Germany's military machinery and munitions, but how to achieve it?
Upkeep, a 'bouncing bomb' was the inspiration of Professor Barnes Wallis. It had to be dropped at low level, with crucial backspin, and delivered with pin point accuracy to stand any chance of success. Specialist bomber crews were selected for 617 Squadron. These men were also drawn from the allied nations, including Australia and Canada, to form a unique group of men who in one night's flying, would become heroes.
This DVD tells the truly remarkable story of those 'Dambusters', and their controversial raids on Moehne, Eder and Sorpe Dams. The film includes testament from German eyewitnesses, a dutch forced labor survivor, specialists, military historians, and members of the Barnes Wallis family. Unique, previously undiscovered German film of the destruction is seen for the first time. Gripping memories of some of the crewmen who flew the mission, vividly bring to life the triumph and tragedy of that moonlight night in 1943, when only eighty men and eight aircraft returned to the raid.
