Inside a Halifax Heavy Bomber: Crew, Turrets and Guns [HP Halifax 2/2]
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- Опубліковано 4 жов 2024
- Step inside a Handley Page Halifax bomber of World War 2. LV907, aka. 'Friday the 13th' is on display at the Yorkshire Air Museum.
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!['Friday the 13th' - Halifax Heavy Bomber [HP Halifax 1/2]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/lCnIychO2pE/mqdefault.jpg)
!['Friday the 13th' - Halifax Heavy Bomber [HP Halifax 1/2]](/img/tr.png)
Hope you enjoyed this episode, it was a blast to shoot. There is another exclusive video with reenactors in original kit manning their crew stations! Check it out: ua-cam.com/video/NaoudEzQfWg/v-deo.html
cool
The bit with the turrets got me thinking of The Chieftain, and then you drop the "Oh my god the plane is on fire line." Great work. From the outside you don't realise how much work they have done on the interior.
To be completely honest here, it is positively unbelievable what this channel has become! I already liked your gaming videos, your humor and the great and well-researched insights and explanations you provide us with. But this...this is surpassing the quality of established documentation channels, and i am not talking about the bad ones! Exclusive insights, actually touring a bomber, seeing some of the planes in flight...wow, just wow! This is beyond impressive, and the reason why you are one of my favourite channels. Thanks for all the great content you deliver to us, Bismarck! Thank you very very much!
Was it Andy Swatland's Group? I was the briefing Met Officer for a museum open day they did in May - LV907s first mission to Nuremberg
Military Aviation History brilliant video! Was just wondering, the pale green/blue colour on the inside, was this pained on the aircraft in ww2 and what was it's purpose? Thanks. Can't wait to see your next video!
My Dad flew the “Jane” as a Flight Lt. in the RCAF 427 Sq. One of the minority that survived his full tour. Flight instructed on Lancs afterwards. He described living in quonset huts in 7 man crews. Return from a mission, 7 empty beds. New crew would come in. Another mission, another 7 empty beds. He said it was like Russian roulette, when was it going to be our turn? A great guy, modest, said he just went to do his duty. A very tough generation. Hats off.
your have to wonder if today's generation would be as freely willing to do jobs like this and how much use they'd be in-between selfies 🤔
@@lfcmarkeb7124 todays generation cant even stay away from bars and parties to protect us from COVID 19!! Made from different stuff. But not good stuff
Sir, my sincere and eternal gratitude to your Father and his crew for the peace and freedom I enjoy today.
@@lfcmarkeb7124 well, yes...., I think it pretty fare to say that 90% of 18 to 30 yr olds in this country simply wouldn't be able to hack it, wouldn't get through basic training!!
My grandfather and your dad my have known eachother. My grandfather was an electrical engineer for 427. I doubt you will know his name. It was Douglas Townsend.
Had the pleasure of knowing a guy who was a navigator on the Halifax. When people asked him about how many missions he flew, he would reply with 6 1/2, but we got the important half done. After a few scotches, he would open up about how petrified he was, his bail out and becoming a “guest” of the Third Reich for two years. He was the sole survivor of his crew. RIP George, you’ve joined the rest of your crew now.
We're really pleased to have helped Christoph with this film. Many people ask what the interior of the Halifax is like and he's done a cool job explaining everything. Great work.
shame it is not the real Friday the 13th
Thanks for sharing the inside of the Halifax with us. I knew that there was an unusual interior layout for the crew but seeing it was special.
Philip Eaton the real nose art is at the RAF Museum
Yes, very good of you to provide him access. Is "Direction finder thingy" a technical term?
My step-dad(RIP) was a tail gunner in the Halifax near the end of WW2.
Found this super interesting mate, nicely done!
Our liege and holy saviour! I, a simple member of the squidonian army salute you, and am humbled to have the opportunity to attach my carrier pigeon to yours. pretty cool to see you around these parts, anyway salutations from Israel!
Squire Why thank you :) Sadly there was no holster for a Webley fitted inside, otherwise I'd have pointed it out ;)
Yeeeeesssssss!!!
Oh holy teapot, it can't be
oi mate, whens some WT gameplay coming out
Great tour, thanks. My dad flew his 35 ops in a Halifax as a mid upper gunner as Flight Sgt. He flew in 425,432, and 429 RCAF squadrons.
His log book shows they were hit by flak a few times and once attacked by a ME 210 night fighter. They crash landed once, flying mostly from Tolthorpe England on night raids. His ops tour ended in Sept 1944.
Several times they had spotted P planes , or pilotless planes, the name at the time for the early cruise missiles the Germans fired at England .
He never spoke much about the war, and lots of his friends had been shot down and killed or captured.
Together we visited the RCAF museum in Trenton Ontario Canada, where they have a very well restored Halifax that had been shot down and sunk in a lake in Scandanavia. It will never fly but it’s great to see the work done to restore it.
Janet Yeoman my dad was with 432 sqn. Flight engineer on the Halifax mark 7. I was part of the original planning team that got the Trenton plane out of the lake. Nice to read your post.
Bruce from Halifax N.S.
First, I doubt it was an Me 210, since they didn't make very many of them. Second, how could anyone possibly tell well enough in the dark if it was an Me 210 or 410, or even 110? You were lucky to be able to make out that there was a plane there, shooting at you, let alone the exact type! US fliers in broad daylight mistook the Ki-61 for a Bf 109 for weeks. The war was full of cases of fighters shooting down their own types in broad daylight, let alone flak accidents, so I have trouble believing tat a bomber crew could have identified their assailant as an Me 210 in the dark.
my father in law was a mid upper gunner in 420 snowy's at tolthorpe 32 mission's
My Dad was qualified for radio/nav/bomb and flew in the Halifax from 1942.
@@justforever96 keyboard historian spotted, no amount of youtube videos will replace actually looking up his flight records you fucking knob.
This was wonderful to see. I had a cousin who was a 20 year old Royal Canadian Air Force pilot of a Halifax in WW II. He went on a mission over the Mediterranean and never came back and it was never known what happened to him. He was one of the greatest generation.
The Halifax was considered far more escapable then a Lancaster . Years ago I worked with an ex Halifax pilot who was awarded the DFC for bringing his aircraft home on two engines . One thing that has always stuck in my mind was his comment that radials were far better then liquid cooled engines. A single bullet can disable a Merlin by hitting the cooling fluid tank.
My grandfather was a navigator on the Halifax. Their aircraft took many flak hits attacking a night fighter base at Aachen, Germany. The hydraulics failed so they couldn't close the bomb bay and all four engines eventually failed but they managed to get across the North Sea on two engines before they had to belly land after losing all their altitude and narrowly missing a tree. The radio operator was wounded when the radio equipment exploded and caused a fire during the crash landing but they all survived the crash. A Lancaster probably wouldn't have made it. Sadly the pilot was killed later in the war flying with a different crew.
Thank you for the tour; my mother lost her cousin, WO2 Peter Maurice Myers, RCAF while on ops with 138 (Special Duty) Squadron in a Halifax in March 1943. While I do not know what position he had (I believe he was the radio operator) This gives me an even greater appreciation for what they expeirenced on their missions.
Dad was a Flight Engineer in 420, Snowy Owl, RCAF, and did a complete tour. Was converting to Lancs when the war ended. I am lucky that I live near Trenton, Ontario where they restored a Halifax and have it on display. Did a great job and because dad and I contributed to get it done, we were invited to the grand opening - was great to see dad looking at the plane and I could see it took him back a lot of years.
My late father, Ft Lt John C Davies RAFVR, served as navigator in 102 (Ceylon) Squadron at Pocklington. Dad passed away in 2010 but I'm very pleased to say that the YAM very kindly gave Dad a tour of Friday the 13th shortly before his death. My family will be eternally grateful for that honour.
Very interesting. A friend of mine was an upper turret gunner in one of these. He was almost my father in law. His RCAF crew completed 6 missions and was shot down in the battle of Berlin in Dec. of 1944. His whole crew got out of the plane and were then captured and he spent the rest of the war in a prisoner camp. Thanks for the detailed tour.
RIP to those who didn't make home. Brave men, everyone. Still owed their Campaign Medal.
@@magna4100 I think Bomber Harris was a bit of a tit, for both sides. He insisted that the best targets were area bombing, and ignored opportunities early on like bombing tactical targets like fuel supplies, etc. Also, earlier on his bombers could have been much more useful in the Battle of the Atlantic. And for the poor Europeans that got area bombed, lots of civilians died that maybe weren't direct threats.
@@magna4100 It was politics, and his position as future PM, was getting bleaker, after the leftwing media gave the RAF and all those linked to the ''evil bombing'' of innocent children etc etc, cobbler's, turned it into a shit-storm. Churchill had saved the world; make no mistake, but he was first and foremost, a hard -nosed Politician. BUT, all those who superceded him, since the war, are just as guilty as those who took the political flak , way back then. THERE SHOULD, have been huge reccognition, of what my two half brother's did , for me, family, and country. Only one came back, the other, was killed on the very last RAF punitive mission, over Kiel, May 3rd, 1945. Five days from wars end.
In france the official version is "a good landing is when you can exit the aircraft withou help from the rescie crew. An excellent landing is when the aircraft can be reused". Lovely work, very informative :)
"If you can walk away from a landing, it’s a good landing. If you use the airplane the next day, it’s an outstanding landing." It is apparently Chuck Yeager.
I always heard that in flying clubs. Funny how good jokes have no borders :)
that or it's one of those that's as old as aviation itself
No, in France it would be like: "a good landing is when you ran away from the fight, an excellent landing is when you landed on enemy airfield, got out of the plane and surrendered" 😂
@@deeplearning2552 Well, the French Airforce did a pretty good job against the Luftwaffe during the invasion of France. I don't have the figures to hand, but as I recall it was well over one for one. The nationalisation of industry in France pre-war meant they had mostly inferior aircraft and no where near enough of them.
@Paul Compton
I don't doubt that, in fact French did put up some resistance against advancing German forces. I just made another stupid "France surrenders" joke :)
Thank you
My dad was the pilot.
When he was 93 he squeezed into the tail turret of a Lancaster!
There is not normally much information on the Halifax so this is brilliant. My father flew in them and it is amazing to me how he managed after looking at this. What is more remarkable ,is that I flew with him on passenger aircraft in the eighties and if we flew into turbulence he would get sometimes get airsick. I once asked him why he didn't get sick in the Halifax and he replied that he didn't have time to think about.
FAMILY MEMBER;'S FLEW IN THEM, AND THE GENERAL OPINION WAS, THAT THEY HAD MORE FAITH IN THE HALIFAX, ONCE THE MERLIN ENGINES WERE FITTED , THAN THE LANCASTER.
@@MrDaiseymay I think it was the other way round. The early versions of the Halifax, which had Merlins, were somewhat underpowered and become increasingly so as more countermeasures kit was fitted and the aircraft became heavier. Also the original arrow head fins and rudders caused instability and sometimes locked up resulting in a number of crashes. The later BIII had more powerful Bristol Hercules engines and larger 'barn door' fins and rudders which were retrofitted to earlier marks. These changes improved the type hugely.
Wonderful video and extremely enlightening, one of my uncles was a Sergeant Gunner in WW2 and flew as a tail gunner in a Halifax, on his fourth operation the aircraft was hit by antiaircraft guns and he had to bail out at night, with the Halifax on fire I can now try to imagine what he went through that night, unbelievable. Thanks for a very good video.
Nicely done, can't imagine what it would have been like to fly even one mission in this plane. My deepest respect to all of the crews.
This is exactly the kind of content that has been missing from UA-cam! Tanks are well provided by the Chieftain, but there wasn't anything with planes. Thank you very much for this!
Being a crew member on the B25 "Panchito" I love seeing people gawk at how tight the inside is. I tell people that it's a war machine made to kill and creature comfort was the last thing thought of.
The arrangement of dials you mention at 4:48 is known as the "Basic Six", and was common to many British aircraft of the time. Having all your blind-flying instruments arranged in a standardized layout makes retraining on different aircraft easier.
"Oh my god, the plane is on fire"
These history/military/aircraft/tanks/firearms groups are so connected, they bounce memes off of each other...
And they will all come together and work on the World War Two channel.
and we'r all die)
I know, but that Stuart light tank Chieftan one, where the hull crew wouldn't really escape was a bit sobering...
"That meme bounced!"
Insane, I've always wanted a great interior view like this. Fantastic well done.
But this isn't a B-17 or B-24.
SO HAVE I, AT LAST, a clear close-up view of the Wireless operators station.
But they also had the best views outside the plane once they were inside the turrets.
Thanks for making this. More Canadian Airmen flew in the Handley Page Halifax than any other plane because the British Bomber Command gave the British Squadrons the newer Lancaster way before the Canadians so they kept flying Halifax's. Canadian squadron call-signs began with the number 4 and 6 Bomber Group in northern England was where they were stationed. It could take a lot more damage than the Lanc as my father told me. He flew in Lancs as observer/trainer on combat operations with 434 squadron but he won the DFC before that as an Air Bomber were in "Hallys" at 424 Squadron. The sad part is that there are no flying Halifax's in the world. Most were scrapped by 1947 but some remained with the RAF until 1952 helping out in the Berlin Airlift with six crashing during the humanitarian mission. France, Egypt and Pakistan used them in the postwar Air Forces with the PAF using 16 until either 1954 or 1961.
Not quite right, the crews were a mixture of British and commonwealth, and Lancasters were mainly in one group first, who converted from the awful Manchester. Halifax crews in Yorkshire had previously flown Whitleys. Still, all respect to them!
My uncle was a rear gunner in 1 of these. Sadly he died in 1944, he was in 76 squadron... its amazing to see inside, thankyou
Thank you so much for this video. My Great Uncle Sam Ross was a tail gunner in a Halifax II that was shot down near Tombeek, Belgium (night of August 28, 1942). Buried in Tombeek with his crew mates. He was 5 foot 11, and I see now that it must have been such an uncomfortable position for him.
Outstanding work by a thoroughly conversant narrator, on an unsung RAF Bomber Command aircraft.
Thank you and The Yorkshire air museum for this film. My Wife's Great Uncle was a navigator with the pathfinders during WW2 and was shot down over Holland. He survived, and was a lookout on the Great escape. Many years later, his plane was recovered in Holland, and a documentary film was made about it, in which, he and surviving members of the crew met Prince Rupert.
Good grief those boys in the rear really had a horrendously scary position. One couldn't imagine trying to get yourself out of there, parachute on, and bail out if the aircraft was in a dive or something whilst on fire. My god brave souls indeed
When you see how awkward it is to move around with the aircraft on the ground, imagine it on fire and spinning earthwards. To put on a parachute and eject must have been almost impossible. No wonder they died in their thousands. Brave young men RIP.
Adrian Larkins centrifugal force probably didn't help
What isn't often mentioned in WW2 history documentary's , is that many Allied aircrew, who had parachuted out, or survived a crash, were shot dead, lynched, or beaten to death by Nazi officials ( Gestapo etc.) but mostly by mad angry civilians. Both Goering and Goebbels had made statements over the radio, that such reactions to captured surviving Allied aircrew, was acceptable; despite it being in contradiction to international law. There were many post-War Trials for this crime, with hangings and long-term imprisonment. The worst incident, involved USAAF crew, of 6 survivors, who were all murdered by the 'MOB' . Known as the ''Russelsheim Massacre'' There appears to be no records of similar reaction's of reprisal, by British people, against Luftwaffe Crew. That dosen't prove it didn't happen of course. I have recently been told, that my half-brother, who had crashed in his Halifax 3, one of 5 suvivors, was shot dead as he emerged from the wreckage, near Kiel, North Germany.
and pitch black!
@@MrDaiseymay Targeting cities in order to make as many civilians dead as possible also was against international law, you see. The Allied organized many such bombings, which did not target military targets, and the pilots of the bombers didn't collect much love for that. I guess, though, that parachuting was in itself very risky, I don't think pilots were trained as paratroopers and they easily harmed themselves or killed themselves while falling to the ground (or against a building, a tree, a lamppost etc.).
Brilliant and sobering seeing where my uncle sat as pilot in 1943 before losing his life on Hamburg bombing raid . Just finished reading bomber command so this was good timing . Thank you
This has to be one of the most underrated channels on UA-cam
The Bomber crews who flew through those dark times to allow us freedom today were a very special breed ..Their selection and training was way beyond anything we can visualise today .. Their crewing up processes and attitudes to every sortie they were to undertake can only be marvelled at .. Survival especially during the battle of Berlin was extremely low but the boys still flew despite the incredible odds against them ..
I do not think we will ever see this generation and their make up ever again. They were truly the chosen few.. We can but pay homage to them and remember them !
Outstanding! Now. let's go through some more. My dad was a tail gunner in a B29, Korea. He had a small cart on rails that he would lie on and push his way back to the guns. He told me he mostly read newspapers during flight. We had a B36 on static display at Chanute AFB Illinois. The cockpit was as big as a bus and 25ft high,maybe. That would be a great investigation. Come to the USA. Don't forget the virtual tour of the Air Force museum , on U Tube.
My Dad's cousin was a flight engineer in a Halifax with 640 squadron out of Leconfield, FTR on 14th Feb 1945,1st and last mission.Buried in Durnbach War cemetery.
Very good my uncle was a navigator on a Halifax sadly FTR on a mission to Germany in WW2
Sorry for your loss. One of my paternal great uncles was also in the RCAF and also a member of a Halifax bomber crew. His aircraft was also reported as having 'failed to return' (FTR) from a bombing mission over Berlin on January 29, 1944. He was a mid-upper (i.e., dorsal) gunner.
The records I have indicate that his aircraft was blown out of the air over the target site. It was one of 36 that failed to return out of a force of just over 600 bombers.
None of the members of the crew of his aircraft survived and accordingly, they have no known grave.
The pilot of the aircraft was a 19 year-old second lieutenant. It's sad to think that his life had barely begun and it was cut short. All too short.
Lest we forget.
Thank you for the video. Dad was a rear gunner on Halifaxes in 35 squadron Pathfinder Force. He completed 88 operations (on other aircraft too) and was awarded the DFC. It was interesting to see where dad spent so much time going to Germany, Italy and others.
Respect. There is a dedicated Rear Gunner room at the Yorkshire Air Museum which is very illuminating with regards to rear turrets and has some laugh out loud cartoons on the walls.
My grandfather was an American b25 squadron captain definitely interested in other wwII bomber videos
My great grandfather was a flight lieutenant tail gunner in a RCAF Halifax throughout the Second World War, survived all his missions and lived until 2008 to the age of 93. Never spoke of the war. I have his trunk that was issued to him as well as the large compass you saw sitting between the pilot’s legs in the video, both of which sit by my bed, along the medals framed. Will have to do a bit of research to find what squadron he was in.
Man those poor bastards didn't stand a chance getting out of that. I've met a few RAF Bomber crewman that served during the war, always did wonder why they always had a clinking sound when they walked. Balls of Steel. God Bless'em
Yep, and the Halifax mk 111 had a reputation among RAF bombers as being one of the easiest to get out of! :-o
@@SAHBfan WUT??? Hahaha, the easiest one! Mannnnn, I can't imagine what was the hardest one would look like!
I read somewhere that the Air ministry refused to increase the size of the escape hatches as it would encourage crew to bail too early. Similar attitude to the refusal to give WW1 pilots a parachute
My grandfather was a flight engineer on one of these won the DFC on one he managed to get it back to the uk with big holes in her she crashed in Canterbury LK950 was the serial number. He burned is legs badly but got back into action 3 weeks later this time on Lancaster's amazing my hero
Halifax was easier to escape/more survivable than the Lancaster,
but due to the Lanc's heavier warlord, crew losses per tonne dropped were lower
My pop flew a Halifax in WW2 . I enjoyed this a lot. This was a very successful bomber in the War and widely used. My pop was RCAF and Canadians loved these. There were, I think, 17 RCAF Halifax squadrons.
Excellent. The Hallifax is the forgotten hero of WW2 in the skies. Thanks for re living the memories for us and I hope you didn't get too many bruises, whilst presenting this.
It dropped Jozef Gabčík and Jan Kubiš, who then went on to assassinate Reinhard Heydrich.
As far as I know, the early marks had problems, but this version was significantly better. B-25 and He 111 were medium bombers, Mosquito was a more of a light bomber (in bomber configuration). Also, Mr. Haller isn't comparing which one was better, merely implying it doesn't get the love it probably should (If I understand correctly).
@Thanos Car This is a replica/reproduction of a Halifax Mk111. The earlier marks of Halifax were not very good, but the MK 111 was a major redesign, almost a different aircraft - and much better. John Haller is right that it is one of the forgotten heros - it gets a bad reputation due to the early marks and the Lancaster takes all of the credit, but the MK 111 had a very good performance, including a higher ceiling than the Lancaster. Out of the two aircraft, it had a higher aircrew survival rate not least because the Halifax was much easier to bail out of if shot down.
@@vaclav_fejt the Halifax always played second fiddle to the Lancaster
@@neilcunningham795 And in every string quartet you need the first violin, the second violin, the viola, and the violoncello. (-:
Thanks very much for this video. My father was F/O Navigator (British) with 4 Canadian crew on a 158 squadron Halifax 3 MZ 374. The pilot was F/O C.J.P.Ramsey. Never talked much about the war except for being shot down over Essen. Vey brave men all.
Excellent video, sir! One of the surprising things about this exhibit is that it is not original. Out of 6176 Halifaxes produced, not one was preserved, maybe war-starved Britain had other priorities in those very hard early post-war years. This Halifax is a painstaking, meticulous reconstruction, structurally fake and with modern materials, furnished inside with thousands of bits´n´pieces obtained here and there. It was an AMAZING jig-saw construction job, with far more merit than mere preservation of an original survivor. Has one glitch, though, it was not thought to be flown, and could never take to the skies. This "Friday the Thirteenth" (the most famous Halifax which survived the war after an astounding 128 missions to her credit, but did not escape the scrapper´s axe in 1946) will never grace the British skies with her mighty roar. She is basically a 1 : 1 Airfix kit, and an amazingly good one at that. My only doubt is the quasi-Soviet green interior; is it authentic?
Halifax II W1048 was preserved thanks to being at the bottom of a Norwegian fjord, where it belly-landed on the ice during a mission to bomb the Tirpitz. It was raised in 1973, and is preserved in its battle-damaged condition in the RAF Museum at Hendon, North London.
Canada has one at the RCAF museum in Trenton Ontario . It was shot down in Norway , sunk in a lake. Thousands of volunteer hours to repair it for display. A tremendous effort showing great respect for the men that flew them, like my dad. 425 Squadron.
Thank u for that tour!My uncle flew in a Halifax as a radio operator in 35 squadron,the Pathfinders back in 1943.He was on his second tour of duty when he was killed in action on 29th.December 1943.After watching your video I’m thinking I’ll visit the museum myself.Again-many thanks.
Beautiful Aircraft, my Granddad flew these, its nice to see where he would have sat.
One of my great uncles was in the Royal Canadian Air Force and he was part of a Halifax crew, having been assigned the post of dorsal gunner. He was killed in action as his aircraft was blown out of the sky during a bombing mission over Berlin on the night of January 29, 1944, aged just 32 years. Lest we forget.
Your video gives me a very good sense of the aircraft that he served in.
Having just seen that rear gunner position, my already high respect for the bravery of those "Tail End Charlie" guys has increased 10-fold. My dad always told me that was just about the worst job on a bomber,
My grandfather was in the Pathfinders....WOP\AG 35 Squadron. This was his office. Thanks for this
spoke to a guy who was a tail gunner voluntered to get out of the coal pits at 18, did 34 pathfinder and special missions.
his pilot wrote a book i which he is meantioned as they were flying over the north sea at night the radio op let the wire aerial with porcelane type eggs which he saw dragging in the water he told the pilot who looked out the window to see the props starting to pick up the water, pulling up a tad was called for, he passed about four years ago. he said a flight of halifax bombers in formation could fend off fighters effectivley. brave men or should it be boys
Thank you! My late father was Arthur (MaC) McArthur LAC 432 sqd Eastmoor. His aircraft was "G" for George. Dad and I supported the Halifax Aircraft Association, when they were recovering and restoring the "spy" Halifax in Trenton Ontario. I had always wondered what the interior looked like. Now i know. He told me the Hali was designed for the Merlin engines and after the war, was tested with 4 and it out performed the Lancasters. Thanks Again!!
I would love to see a Cheftain style review of aircraft using the "Oh my God, the plane is on fire" test
Thank you! Thank you! I really enjoyed the tour of the Halifax as it was the A/C that my Uncle John flew in during the war. He was a bombardier and had the unfortunate experience of being shot down and spending 18 months in POW camp.
Imagine him in a B-17 ball turret...😂
Seriously though, this video made me better respect the job and conditions bomber crews had to deal with!
Darrius Dias you mean you didn’t respect them already?
Keyword - BETTER. I've read a lot on Bomber Command and the job they had to do but there's only so far reading visualization can take you. Until you can actually see and touch (or watch someone else touch) their history...the experience seems incomplete. Restorations and monuments like these simply add another dimension to what the crews had to deal with lending a better appreciation for it. Hope this clarifies...
My father-in-law was a radio operator on Halifax.
Thank you for showing his station, I just just imagine him climbing in and out, trust him to have a nice seat.
same, grandfather was the pilot officer/wireless. They took damage over Mannheim on 10/8/42 and couldn't keep up so fell back out of formation. They tried to get home over Wimereux on the coast north of Boulogne but ran into flak batteries shredding the plane. They banked hard to port as the enemy fire was too heavy (they were struggling at lower altitude) and they went down on the rail line, the scorching was evident on the embankments til 1956. None survived. He had been a marine engineer on merchant ships in the Atlantic, was torpedoed 3 times, the last by the Graf Spee. Sick of drifting in lifeboats/rafts for days, he decided to xfer to the RAF where he could be closer to home esp as his wife was expecting. His daughter was born 3 months after they went down. awarded DFC. Thanks for the video, I liked how you went through the layouts and roles. I suspect getting out or even just moving in a burning plane that would be either diving, spinning etc would be a lot harder than at a smooth level.
Per a F/E who flew 41 ops, the Flight Engineer was trained to be able to take the star shots with the sextant when the navigator needed one.
Excellent video, great aircraft...
My stepfather was in the RAF at a Halifax base and after the war they were all being flown off to Wales to be scrapped.
One of the aircraft had a defective engine so they go a brand new engine out of stores, fitted it, made several air tests to make sure it was airworthy then flew it off to Wales to be scrapped.
What a shame they didn't save a few...
It seems like whomever designed the navigator's position had a son who was a navigator or something. "We'll give 'em a chair, because I know he likes to sit, a little lamp, because I know he likes to see, and an escape hatch, because I know he likes to be alive."
My Uncle was a rear gunner in a Halifax, shot down and killed over Holland when I was 3 months old in 1943. He was in 51 sqdn. out of Snaith and I visit his grave in the Netherlands quite frequently. Much respect to the Dutch people who tend his and crew mates graves and the interest group who have provided me with much information. Thank you for this very interesting video.
You might be interested in my post above.
@@pup1008 I'm sorry but I can't seem to see another post from you.
@@Captally
Strange if that hasn't appeared! It was more meant for the Canadian guy below your post but I'll set it out here anyway.
*_"We have a holiday home on the Essex coast & in the 70's they dug up the remains of a *RCAF_*_ Halifax that came down almost on the beach in March 1945 killing all on board. I have done a lot of research on the plane getting details of the mission, pictures of the crew, home base etc but could never really get to the bottom of the crash itself. It was only over the last couple of years that I found out that there was ironically a Canadian anti aircraft battery on the cliff & they shot it down in an act of friendly fire!"_*
Awesome vid. It feels entirety different when you can actually see the interior of a ww2 bomber and the tasks of a crew members, as compared to just the exterior.
Wow, thanks for this video, my Dad was a rear gunner in a Halifax age 18 and he survived the war.
That Mid Upper Turret looks like a right death trap to try and escape from in an Emergency. It was also a prime target for fighters given the roundel just below.
You are 100% correct there, The designers obviously hadn't even considered a suitable mode of escape and, having Uncles who flew these aircraft, it was always, "It's not gonna happen to us" attitude and they simply pressed on with the job.
My Uncle Malcolm Davis was a pilot on a Halifax, with the Squadron 578. He had many nights flights over Germany during the 2nd World War. Unfortunately I never met him as he died in 1953 & I was born in 1957, but as a child he was my hero.
Fantastic episode. I really enjoy Nick Moran's Inside the tanks series of videos simply because showing how the crews had operate the machine is just much more tangible when you can actually see it. Imagine trying to get out of that turret with the plane spiralling to earth? Not easily would be my guess.. It gives you a lot more respect for the men in there. Planes are my first love so I would be thrilled to see if you could do more videos like this. Anyway great content as ever. Good hunting.
My great grandad was a navigator inside of a Halifax during the war. Absolutely amazing to finally see inside of the aircraft he flew in 👍
My grandmother's cousin, on my father's side, was a pilot during WWII of one of these. During my first trip in France back in 2007 I went to his crew memorial located in Lesquielles-Saint-Germain. He was shot down on the 17th of april 1943, at the age of 22 on his 15th mission. 36 out of 327 planes were lost that night for that mission. Could you imagine 327 of these flying towards the same objective at the same time and their payload? (ok maybe not all of them were Halifax but sill!)
Your video my friend, gave me the chill! It was really awesome! I would have gave it a rate of 100% if you would had seated in the pilot's position with your GoPro! With that, I could have had a little look of ''what it was like'' being in his position back in the days. But nevertheless, +1 sub mate!
Fantastic video. I am ex RAF but I was an aircraft engineer in the 70/80’s it makes you realise how brave these guys were! Remember it was FREEZING at high altitude so they wore heavy sheepskin flying jackets (I have a genuine WW2 one and they are HEAVY) so they had to squeeze into the tiny spaces in heavy flying boots, thick pants sweaters and jackets! Notice the tail gunners position it is OPEN TO THE ELEMENTS! Many crews died when they were hit as imagine trying to get out FAST with all your gear on, put in parachute and get out of the small door! That is why so many bomber crews were lost 😢 Brave men giving their lives for our freedom, we shall remember them all.
The records I have relating to my paternal great uncle's service in the RCAF during the war indicates temperatures of -35C during an eight-hour mission over Mannheim, Germany, in early January 1944.
The US Air Force was somewhat ahead of the RAF and the RCAF in terms of technology, as crews of B-17 bombers were issued electrically-heated flight jackets.
13:02 "So yeah, we're bombing the Netherlands"
Finally, someone had to
Why? :(
Noah Brinkman They know what they did
Actually there's a pretty cool story about that specific cancelled bombing run and Canadian Rambo but Tougher and Better. Zwole was single-handedly captured by the single baddest motherfucker that ever lived, he was such a badass Nick Fury's original design was based on him. Except, unlike Fury, Leo Major was real and recovering from a broken spine when he did it.
He is bombing the city Zwolle thats close to where i live lol
Noah Brinkman because Germany took over the Netherlands so the British bombed the Germans basically
I have pictures of my Dad, Flt Lt Lenard Raynsford DFC RCAF, and his crew prior to a mission in their gear standing besides the Halifax. His last mission was August 8th, 1944, it was also his birthday. He was 24.
Excellent video. I've had a tour of the Lancaster that's on display here in West Australia, and I have to say the Halifax's interior is capacious in comparison. I'm about your height and I struggled to navigate myself over all the ancillaries and the wing spar, and that's without the plane's movement in flight. How anyone managed to get out in time in an emergency situation..... The crews were incredible people, flying night after night.
STEVE Knox While crews loved the Lancaster more than the Halifax, the Halifax had a better crew survival rate when the crippled aircraft was being abandoned..
Mark Fryer, absolutely. That was my point.
It was extremely difficult to get out of a crippled bomber...especially if it was in a spin. The g-forces would be enormous and pin you to the fuselage. About two minutes to make your peace before you became just as mangled as the aircraft.
My late uncle was a tail gunner - 1 tour in Wellingtons, a bit of AG training, then part of a tour in Lancs. His plane was shot down in flames and he and the rest of his crew bailed out. All but the bomb aimer (who was a replacement for their "regular") survived and returned to the UK later. He was, as I recall, a shortish man and I believe that shorter men were picked for tail gunner positions because of the issues that the narrator had getting in and out.
Corbett
Thank you so much for your work making this, my father was a radio operator on a Halifax in the 624 squadron in Blida Algeria in 1944/45. I can now appreciate how cramped it must have been. Well done!
oh man, new chieftain here, OH MY GOD THE PLANE IS ON FIRE
Your plane being set on fire is what I call a "significant emotional event".
Oh Bugger! The tank is on fire!
My father, Sgt Albert Wright, was a rear gunner in these aircraft. Nothing but admiration for him and all the crews of Bomber Command.
Great video I really enjoyed it !!!! Makes you realise what those bomber crews went through and why so many never returned home !!
Really enjoyed the info! I'm very envious because I have visited this Halifax many times, but never been aboard. My interest comes from the fact my Uncle was a Wireless Operator aboard a Halifax III that flew from RAF Pocklington a few miles away from the museum (Yorkshire Air Museum, Elvington). He and 5 of his crew were killed, returning from a raid on Stuttgart, 25/7/1944. Your film shows how difficult it was to get around inside the cramped plane, and how difficult it would have been to escape - in the dark, shot up, and spinning or upside down. In my Uncles crew, only the rear gunner got out, by rotating his turret and baling out backwards. The rear gunners report stated he shouted for instructions from the crew when they got shot up, and the only voice he heard was from the bomb aimer who said he was hit. If, as you state, the bomb aimer only had contact with the wireless operator during a mission, then my uncle must have been injured or killed before the RG made the decision to grab his 'chute, spin his turret, and bale out. I hope this was the case as the Halifax crashed in flames soon after. My Father always believed his brother had been burned alive. But I think it more likely he was killed in the air, or died on impact. None could be identified in the wreckage, so all remains were buried in a communal grave in Eure, France.
Thanks again for putting the time in to show the younger generation around the Halifax. Thousands were made, but only two are still around to view. An amazing memorial to the Many who flew her.
RIP the 55,500 of Bomber Command who gave up their lives for Europe's freedom.
They were all intelligent guys too. The RAF only selected the cleverest out of all the volunteers, then put them through two years training. In my Uncles case it was 2 yrs training, and dead within two months on ops. Not many were out of there 20's. My Uncle Bob, who I never got to meet, was just short of his 21st birthday. Over and out. x
Really fascinating. My 1st cousin, once removed, Sgt Geoffrey Jandron, was an air gunner in the RCAF, based at Elvington. Sadly, HR841 collided with a night fighter over Berlin, causing the plane and crew to be lost on 29th Jan 1944.
I really liked this video! The bombers destination, Zwolle in the Netherlands is actually my hometown. I live only a few minutes away from a block of streets called the "Pilotenbuurt". Here all the streets are named after Pilots and aircrew members who have died flying near Zwolle during the second world war.
My dad flew a Halifax with radials from RAF Snaith ; thank you for a great presentation
My father was a Flight Engineer at Snaith from May'44 to July'44, then 78sqdn (Breighton) and finally, in Sep '44, 171sqdn (North Creake) with new Halifax 3 on special electronics jamming missions with their 8th special operator crew member. Unfortunately, there wasn't a 'Young' in any of his crews.
Great vid!
I think a special episode about autopilots used during ww2 could be really interesting!
My great uncle was a rear gunner on a Halifax! I've never seen the inside of one. Thank you!
Found it very interesting. Thanks! Just for future concideration: It is a bomber, would like to have seen the bomb holding area.
My grandpa piloted the Halifax in 1942. He was with the 434 Squadron. Thanks for making this video!
One of my great uncles was a mid-upper gunner in 434 Squadron from 1943 until January of 1944 when he was killed in action during a mission.
@@stevestruthers6180 I am so sorry to hear that. I a great uncle and two great cousins that were killed in the sinking of the U.S.S. Indianapolis. So I know how you feel.
One of the most interesting facts about the Halifax was that Sir Handley-Page himself hated the Merlin engine when everybody else seemed to want it dearly. He wanted the Bristol Hercules sleeve-valve engines, already fitted on the Short Stirling, but for all early Halifaxes was forced to take the Merlin instead.
In principle he was right, since early Hercules engines offered more power than early Merlins and, typical of air-cooled radials, could sustain more battle damage than liquid-cooled V12s.
Early Halifaxes suffered from fatal crashes due to handling vices. Aerodynamically revised later Halifaxes all had the much-desired Hercules and were quite successful. In contrast, Lancasters fitted with the Herc radials were not considered a success.
Compared to the Lancaster, the Halifax had two drawbacks: a lower ceiling, making it more vulnerable to enemy Flak. Development of high altitude fighter engine supercharger design had been of great benefit to the Rolls-Royce Merlins. Second, it didn't have the unobstructed extra large bomb bay like the Lancaster. Therefore it could not drop large single bombs like the Tallboy which sank the German battleship Tirpitz
just the thought of the Navigator and the turret operator getting bored on a long flight, and just making faces at each other from their own little bubbles.
Bee H. Navigators were usually too preoccupied during the flight to make faces. They had to have an updated position plotted and taking fixes (Astro, Gee, later Radar and electronic mapping systems) plus keeping a record in the flight log which were inspected. A very busy man.
My grandfather was a navigator on the Halifax. His best man at his wedding was the Bomb Aimmer. They probably had a lot of time to get to know each other on the long flights.
yes, but anyone whose worked at really, any job that has a lot to keep you busy, will know.... at some point, someone will figure out some way to fuck around when they should be working. Just the nature of man.
And if the gunner gets _really_ bored, he can shoot the navigator
I always assumed there were limiters so you didn't shoot parts of your own plane off.
Fascinating video, and so well done. Thanks for the tour of this amazing aircraft. My dad flew as a turret gunner with RAAF 466 Squadron out of Yorkshire, also on Wellingtons, and this was a great insight into what these brave lads endured.
My dad flew as wireless operator on Halifax with RAAF 466 Squadron based at Driffield in Yorkshire.
I really want more of these, this is one of the best videos i've spend my time on this year. ( also made a halifax model not long ago ).
Upvote for making an aircraft model. This should not be a dying art.
Nothing but major respect to all who served in these airplanes. .....ty for your service...
"Direction finder thingy" is now my new personal favorite word for a compass. ;))
My great grandfather joe was part of 644 squadron, as a light engineer on one of these beasts. He served throughout the whole war, earning the 1939-45 star and medal. He was full of joy and laughs, and i am so proud to be related to him, of who he was and, what he did 🇬🇧❤️
Love the handley page halifax my great grandma was a bomb rack inspector in a factory where they produced these beauties
My Dad was a navigator with No. 6 Group , which was an RCAF squadron, during 1943. -1944. His last mission was August 8th, 1944 which was also his birthday. He was 24.
My dad flew a raid that day also as mid upper air gunner. At 1905 hrs they departed Tholthorpe England in Halifax LW993M . Pilot was 429 Squadron Leader Bryson. It was a rare daytime Op that hit an oil dump at Chantilly ( Paris) . They flew 4hrs 15 min . It was my dad’s 29 th Op before he completed his 35 Ops in his first tour.
I have his very detailed Logbook.
Now you've got to go to Hamilton, Ontario and the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum to fly in their Lancaster and take the WW2 bomber tour to the next level.
Daniel Palmer I want do do that only problem is it’s to far from BC
I think that the museum that this was shot at also has a non flying but taxable Lancaster available. So no need to go to Canada!
My uncle Denny was a navigator in this plane. 17 years old. He told me some horrific tales. He was a Canadian in the rcaf went to Spaulding Moore into the raf. God bless him
The Lancaster was even harder to escape from in an emergency as it had even smaller escape hatches.
My great uncle Harry was a wireless operator/EW officer on Halifaxes during the war. My father went to a museum with him once and my dad had organised a surprise, that he be allowed to go inside the museum's Halifax to revisit his memories. He steadfastly refused to step inside it and said "I've promised Jean I'll never get inside one of those bloody awful things ever again. I almost died in one on 30 separate occasions and I won't tempt fate". Jean being his wife. Up to that point the family mythos was that Harry was the family war hero; this was their first window into the reality, that the people in the air were terrified, the people on the ground were terrified, that whole thing was just bloody awful. Arthur Harris said in later life "I hope this helps to keep people out of these sorts of riots; they never do anybody any good in the end.". Great video, fantastic insights.
This should be called: “Polite young man apologises for how cramped it is to film in a WW2 bomber”
Really enjoyed the video, thank you.
Any landing you can walk away from is a good landing. Any landing where you are able to reuse the craft is a great landing.
This was just excellent Bis, thank you 👍
CheckSix Cheers :)
My Father was a Mid Gunner, He was around 5' 7'' He said he would see bolts of lighting between the body of the plane and the wings.
St Elmo’s Fire ? An odd aviation factor.
How the hell the aircrew managed it every night and then to try and bail out if the aircraft was on fire or badly damaged? Great respect for them.
Most didn't. I always wondered why bomber crew casualties were so high. I now know why
@@lovablesnowman The survival rate of a destroyed Lancaster was only 15%. It was 50% for US B-17s and B24s. I think the Halifax had a slightly higher escape rate than the Lancaster but not by much. One factor was that for the most part the British flew at night, with some exceptions in 1944 and 1945. Getting out of a falling plane at night is undoubtedly more difficult.