Road Trip To RAF Scampton Dambusters
Вставка
- Опубліковано 25 сер 2024
- Uploading this today seems to be appropriate even though our visit to RAF Scampton was 2 days ago. But today 17th May 1943 the #Dambusters would have been returning home from there raid lead by #GuyGibson on the Möhne, Eder and Sorpe Dams. History will always tell two arguments to the dams raid but I have to agree with military historian James Holland and to quote him;
'In recent years historians have tended to downplay the successes of the dams raids but I think that's wrong. Operation Chastise has many far reaching effects but not all of them were immediate. Just a few weeks after the reopening of the Möhne Dam in the autumn of 1943 Field Marshall Rommel took command of the Atlantic Wall. A planned series of defences that ran all the way from Denmark to western France. And when he reached the channel coast he discovered there was barely a wall there at all. And one of the reasons for that was that many of the laborious had been transferred to Germany to rebuild the dams. Barely 12 months after the raid an allied force set forth from ports all along the English coast. With the German defences still incomplete, the invasion was a success. Simply put, without the dams raid, D Day would have been considerably harder'
We owe so much to them brave airmen of Bomber Command, and we should be more proud for them brave than ever. Guy Gibson for everything I've read up on him being a very arrant man who suffered with OCD was without a doubt an exceptional leader, and highly experienced pilot, and fully deserved his VC for his leadership that night. More can be read up on the subject of the dams raid than I could ever write in this small box, but it meant alot to me to go to RAF Scampton and see the place Guy Gibson and his Dambusters trained from and left in May 1943 to carry out the dams raid. To be around the living history such as this was just truly amazing. Lest we forget the brave 53 airmen who lost there lives that night, and the innocent civilians caught up in the flood after the raid
Music by:
Doug Maxwell/Media Right Productions - Sing Swing Bada Bing
And
Aakash Gandhi - Immortality
I was extremely affected by this....My Grandmother who lived in Lincolnshire would watch the planes leaving from her bedroom window..... Ever since watching the Dambusters when I was about ten in the Uk.. I have been totally dedicated to all things connected to this event as well as WW2 in general... God Bless them all..We will never forget , ever ..
Wow that's an amazing story, and a great personal connection to the Dambusters you have. I just loved my day I spent there, to be around the history of an event that changed WW2 was just incredible. To think Guy Gibson was 25 when he won the VC for the raid, and looking at myself in my mid 30's, you just can't believe the age and bravery of them young airmen. One day I'd like to go the the Ruhr Valley and see the dams themselves. It's so important to never forget the sacrifice them brave serviceman and women made for our freedom. Lest We Forget
Steve, I live near where our Lancaster Vera is based at the Wareplane Heritage Museum in Hamilton. As I am sure you are aware, she toured the UK a few years back with your Lancaster Thumper. She flies a few times a week in the summer, it is a beautiful thing to see. Our museum is a flying museum, planes that can, do. Please look them up, they do a vintage car day as well.
Lest we forget.
Graham
Now I do envy you, they do tend to fly a lot more of there collection than how we baby our over hear, mostly down to red tape. I was lucky enough to see both Vera and Thumper in the skies together over the IWM Duxford and captured the moment the UA-cam, but I put my camera away after the first pass as I wanted to capture the moment with my eyes and not looking back through a camera. Plus all the many others filming anyway (link to the video below) I'd love to get over to Canada one day and go to Warplane Heritage Museum, Niagara Falls and see if I can try and meet up with Cheftush and Elin Yakov. Lest we Forget
ua-cam.com/video/BfymiizY7xQ/v-deo.html
Steve Denton
Tush, Elin, Niagara Falls, and I are all within about 2 hours of each other. You will have to take a trip sometime. You can actually have a flight in our Lancaster if you have a spare 2,000 pounds or so.
Graham
Now that is a must flying in the Lanc! But you've got me thinking
My home for 3 years. Loved it there.
Great stuff
Remember going to the IWM in 1971 and seeing a Lancaster cockpit, was amazed how small it was.
Have paid my respects to all the Dambusters who didn't return the last Les Knight about a month ago.
I've been in the cockpit of the IWM London's Halifax. You really do get a feel for how small it is and how vulnerable the air crews were. The chaps on 617 Squadron they were made of tougher stuff. I've every respect for all air crews of Bomber Command. Very brave men indeed 👍
they where very brave men 617 may they who never came back RIP
Couldn't of put it better myself, very brave men indeed, the men of bomber command 👍
Well done Steve, your becoming a rare breed , most people of your generation don't even know who Guy Gibson was. Such a wasted end but perhaps he knew his destiny.
Cheers John, sadly my generation would get more offended over Guy Gibsons dogs name than stop to think about the engineering achivements of Barnes Wallas and bravery, leadership skills and low level flying skills of Guy Gibson and his Dambusters. I think it should be taught in schools across the country as a matter of British pride. Its also inspirational is the dams where thought to be impossible to breach. But I doubt it'll ever happen. I think with Guy Gibson, well he was many things and being kept back with a desk job and going around the USA promoting the war effort after flying the dams raid was no fun for a leader who lead from the from the front. He was also an adventurer and many things. But I've read up many accounts of his last flight in the Mosquito, being unfamiliar with the aircraft I don't see that for a reason it crashed. He was a highly experienced pilot. I've also read up on accounts of friendly fire, but like you say he probably knew he'd meet ]his maker. It was war, and he was an adventurer, a true brave sole and one of a kind
All i can say Steve is big respect to them all. Thank You very much for this vid..
I couldn't agree more, they all deserve so much more respect than what we give them. glade you enjoyed the video, I think going to the dams in Germany maybe next on the cards
Thanks for sharing steve,,,,my grandfather served in the British military during the war,,,,
All the best to you steve,,,,enjoy the summer driving season,,,,,it's just starting to warm up here in Canada,,,,I've had my TR6 out for a few times,,,,
Please take care ,,,
Cheers Doug, that's interesting to know. we needed every man we could get back then. It still amazes me how many came over from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA etc etc to fight for Britain against the Nazis.
Great stuff to hear your getting you 6 out and about, summers hear, time to enjoy it!
My father grew up in Great Yarmouth,,,
My great grandfather had a ship yard there,,,,had a fleet of fishing boats,,,
I used to go on holiday when I was a kid to Lowerstoft, we'd often head out down the coast to Yarmouth, and all the other seaside towns while we were there. Norfolk is such a lovely part of the country
Well done! I enjoyed the tour😃!
Your welcome
My dad was stationed there during ww2
That's awesome 👍
yes if was not for guys like them we would not have the freedom we have now
Couldn’t agree more 👍🏻
Awesome! What a great TRip.
Cheers Tush, its somewhere I've always wanted to go to, I think seeing the dams themselves in Germany will be next on this list