Lancaster Bomber

Andyk

Member
Messages
61,039
Last night we had a Lancaster Bomber fly over Chepstow in memory of Flight Lieutenant Bill Townsend of **** Buster fame. What a sight.....To see these amazing machines so close over head always fills you pride. The reason for the fly past was because Bill Townsend lived in Chepstow and this was a celebration of his life. Couldn't believe the amount of people that was out lining the streets just to see this wonderful machine overhead.

Anyway just thought I would share a few pictures.....
 

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safrane

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16,748
A number of cinemas were showing a remastered version of the Dambusters film last night for one night only... only found out by accident yesterday eve.

I di however have the privilege of attending a talk and dinner with Johnny Johnson earlier this year at Thornbury Castle and collected a couple of signed photos.

Real hearos... not the silly ones we see on TV today.
 
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6,001
Wonderful, thank you
I watched the old b&w film last night on tv.
A very good film no false patriotism and quite factual I believe.
On a similar theme I also watched a box set (4 episodes) of Spy in WW2 where they took 14 modern volunteers and put them through the SOE training course really good, with some surprising results
Worth a watch.
 

GeoffCapes

Member
Messages
14,000
I often see Second World War planes flying over our house as we have the Battle of Britain museum up the road. Still and awesome sight seeing the old birds flying over.

Just on Sunday on a stroll to the pub we were greeted by 3 Spitfires flying in formation.

Proper heroes who flew in them.
 

Doohickey

Velociraptor
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2,496
There was a programme a few years ago that recreated the actual bomb run and how difficult it was to get to the right place at the right height and speed to make the bomb bounce - and they did it in broad daylight and not under fire.

It was an incredible feat of flying and bravery.
 

Lozzer

Member
Messages
2,280
Anyone who likes this sort of thing , I can thoroughly recommend a visit to see Lancaster "Just Jane" at East Kirby, up close and personal when she's running those engines up is just awesome.
http://www.lincsaviation.co.uk

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Wanderer

Member
Messages
5,791
I've got the game on my iPad! Well more of a sim really, not cutting edge but better than the one they had on the C64!

I've read a lot about the raid, and the films inaccuracies. Like the spotlights, the backspin, and the call signs on releasing the mine. The real ones were really obscure, not as punchy as ‘Goner' and ‘Black Person'.

The Germans also captured a live mine, called it codename ‘Kurt' but could work out how to make it bounce, used rockets on it. Typical Audi drivers....

I read someone's memories on the raid some years ago, and described I think it was Hopgoods's Lanc who'd released his mine too early and it exploded under the plane, causing serious damage. Hopgood tried to gain height but released he couldn't, and said over the VHF (Gibson had the Lancs fitted with fighter style VHF for inter-plane comms), ‘Sorry Chaps, I think we've had it.'

He was killed along with all but one of the crew.


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safrane

Member
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16,748
They also lost bombers and crews when testing the bomb.

There is film of one dropping the bomb too low and it bounced up ripping the rear of the plane off...doubt the poor sods got out at that hight.
 

midlifecrisis

Member
Messages
16,102
Had the privilege of climbing all over the Canadian Lancaster when it came over for displays with 'our' BBMF one at Bournemouth airport. I came home stinking of hydraulic fluid! One Lancaster flying is a great sound but two is really cool as the 8 merlins beat off each other. God only knows what a whole Squadron sounded like taking off from RAF Lincolnshire.
 

D Walker

Member
Messages
9,827
Pull up a sand bag....MLC will know, the couple we bought our first house off, Scottish couple from Dundee, we had a viewing and I was determined to knock them down as you do, in the viewing he asks what I do, Army, oh I was RAF, 2nd world war, out comes the medals, serious wake up call, then the flying log, he was a rear gunner..
A proper true hero, no ares and graces,
Paid full price.....
 

Lozzer

Member
Messages
2,280
They also lost bombers and crews when testing the bomb.

There is film of one dropping the bomb too low and it bounced up ripping the rear of the plane off...doubt the poor sods got out at that hight.
That was a Wellington I think, I'm sure it's on YouTube that one.

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Jnismith

Member
Messages
284
Pull up a sand bag....MLC will know, the couple we bought our first house off, Scottish couple from Dundee, we had a viewing and I was determined to knock them down as you do, in the viewing he asks what I do, Army, oh I was RAF, 2nd world war, out comes the medals, serious wake up call, then the flying log, he was a rear gunner..
A proper true hero, no ares and graces,
Paid full price.....

My mother (who’s brother was in the RAF and killed in WW2) told me that rear gunners were called tail-end Charlies. I was probably the worst job as you were fired upon the most and unable to get out in the event of the plane being damaged.
 

Wanderer

Member
Messages
5,791
They also lost bombers and crews when testing the bomb.

There is film of one dropping the bomb too low and it bounced up ripping the rear of the plane off...doubt the poor sods got out at that hight.

That's not a Lanc - I believe it was a Mitchell B-25 trying the Highball (smaller) variant of the Upkeep mine later in the war, as far as I know no crew lost their lives on test runs for the dams raids.

Remember this was the smaller version of the mine, (Highball) that ended up being tested by the Americans for attacks against Japanese warships, no American bomber or indeed any other contemporary bomber could carry the 4 ton mine used for the Dams (Upkeep). Indeed the Lanc later carried the 12 and 22 ton Grand Slam and Tallboy bombs used to sink the Tirpitz and as earthquake bombs to destroy the submarine pens in France and railway viaducts in Germany like Bleifeld.

I'm totally switched on this subject, I could go on Mastermind or even Masermind if it existed!
 

D Walker

Member
Messages
9,827
My mother (who’s brother was in the RAF and killed in WW2) told me that rear gunners were called tail-end Charlies. I was probably the worst job as you were fired upon the most and unable to get out in the event of the plane being damaged.

Exactly, when I sat with this old guy, looking through his “history”, having just come back from 1st gulf war, I realised/ knew I’d had it easy, kept in touch through Xmas cards etc, poor guy died 2/3 years later...
 

Lozzer

Member
Messages
2,280
That's not a Lanc - I believe it was a Mitchell B-25 trying the Highball (smaller) variant of the Upkeep mine later in the war, as far as I know no crew lost their lives on test runs for the dams raids.

Remember this was the smaller version of the mine, (Highball) that ended up being tested by the Americans for attacks against Japanese warships, no American bomber or indeed any other contemporary bomber could carry the 4 ton mine used for the Dams (Upkeep). Indeed the Lanc later carried the 12 and 22 ton Grand Slam and Tallboy bombs used to sink the Tirpitz and as earthquake bombs to destroy the submarine pens in France and railway viaducts in Germany like Bleifeld.

I'm totally switched on this subject, I could go on Mastermind or even Masermind if it existed!
B25 was twin rudder, deffo single, Welly.
https://youtu.be/kgSiIojF7fE


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Wanderer

Member
Messages
5,791
My mother (who’s brother was in the RAF and killed in WW2) told me that rear gunners were called tail-end Charlies. I was probably the worst job as you were fired upon the most and unable to get out in the event of the plane being damaged.

Actually not so much on a Lanc. re escape. The Lanc had a terribly small hatch for normal crew, so much so that it record was marred by the fact so many crew died cos they couldn't get out of it when it was stricken, compared to the Halifax or Stirling - inferior planes but escapable...

Even in a Lanc. the tail gunner could bob his chute on, swing the turret and jump out of the turret door. I recollect that out of the three survivors of shot down Lancs on the Dams Raids, two where tail gunners....