Book description
On the night of 16-17 May 1943, nineteen Lancaster bombers from 617
Squadron headed for Germany. Their mission, for which they had been
trained under a cloak of absolute secrecy, was to destroy the dams of
the Ruhr Valley and in doing so cripple the Nazi industrial war
effort. It was to become one of the most famous raids of WW2.
For the first time, acclaimed oral historian Max Arthur has gathered
together the voices of the 'Dambusters', including Guy Gibson,
commander of the mission and Barnes Wallis, who developed the iconic
Bouncing Bomb. These voices tell of the hard training and sheer
bravery that went into this legendary mission. We also hear from the
German civilians who suffered the attack, who speak of the devastation
that was wrought in their lives. This was a raid like no other, and in
this extraordinary collection Max Arthur has created an enduring
record of a unique event in British military history.
Max Arthur served with the RAF and has written several bestselling
oral history books including
Forgotten Voices of the Great War
and
Forgotten Voices of the Second World War
. He writes for the
Independent
and gives lectures on strategy and leadership.
