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| The raid was originally planned for the night of the 14/15th September but, when halfway to the target, the weather plane reported that the target was obscured and the Lancasters were recalled. Whilst turning at low level over the sea, David Maltby (one of the Dambuster originals) made a miscalculation and his Lancaster cart wheeled in to the sea with the loss of all onboard. In this picture Sqn Ldr Maltby is being introduced to King George VI following the dam raids. |
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| In the minutes before and after midnight of the 15/16th September eight 617 Sqn Lancasters took off from their base at Coningsby, Lincolnshire. On this raid the place of David Maltby was taken by Flt/Lt Mickey Martin. |
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| Once more, at low level, the Lancasters headed for Ladbergen. As they flew over the German border town of Nordhorn (in Dutch spelled Nordhoorn) George Holden with Guy Gibson's handpicked crew were hit by flak positioned on top of this textile factory. EE144 crashed close by, the terrible explosion killed several civilians on the ground and almost brought down two of the other Lancasters. |
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Lancaster EE130 piloted by F/Lt Ralph Allsebrook was hit by flak as it flew over the junction of the Dortmund Ems and the Mittelland Canals. The Lancaster tried to make an emergency landing but collided with the roof a house and then a crane on the canal bank before crashing into the water. The next day the Germans found that the crew had all been decapitated by the impact with the crane. The tranquil setting of the location today disguises the horror of the events in 1943. (see The German defences) |
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Ralph Allsebrook (3rd from the left) was ex-Hampden aircrew who had converted to Lancasters. Until his death he had lived a charmed life, surviving a collision with a barrage balloon over Sheffield and a ditching in the sea. He had been awarded the DSO and the DFC. |
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| Lancaster JA898 piloted by F/Lt Harold Wilson was hit by flak and crashed on the banks of the canal in Ladbergen. The picture shows the wreckage of their Lancaster. |
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| This is the same
area today. The land bordering the canal has been extensively
altered since the war and an exact comparison is now virtually
impossible. (See The Local Communities) |
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| Lancaster JB144 flown by F/Lt Knight was damaged by fir trees whilst flying low around the target. The Lancaster was severely damaged and, once his crew had bailed out, F/Lt Knight attempted a forced landing near Den Ham. Unfortunately, the Lancaster hit a bank and he was killed. His crew either evaded capture or were taken prisoner. F/Lt Knight's crew had made the final breach of the Möhne Dam. |
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| The fifth and final Lancaster to be lost that night was JA874 piloted by F/O William Divall. Records show that his Lancaster crashed some distance from the target at Bramsche (near Lingen). He was reported to have been hit by flak. However, the chronology of this loss can not be detailed. |  |
This was indeed a black night for 617Sqn and they were never used in a low level attack of this nature again. The attack on the canal was not successful. The canal banks were not breached and a high price had been paid for this failure. Only three of the eight Lancasters made it home that night. |
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