On this date in 1887 Barnes Wallis, scientist, engineer and inventor best known for inventing the bouncing bomb used by the RAF in the "Dambusters" raid during World War II was born. 10 facts about Barnes Wallace and the Dambusters.
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Barnes Wallis was the son of a GP. He left school at seventeen to work at Thames Engineering Works in London. He moved on to J. Samuel White's, the shipbuilders based at Cowes on the Isle of Wight. He originally trained as a marine engineer and in 1922 he took a degree in engineering via the University of London External Programme. In 1913 when an opportunity arose for him as an aircraft designer. He jumped at that and joined Vickers – later Vickers-Armstrongs and then part of the British Aircraft Corporation – and worked there until he retired in 1971. He became a vegetarian at the age of 73.
He might have got the idea for his bouncing bomb from reading about cannonballs in the 16th and 17th centuries that bounced on Water. It was said that Nelson took advantage of such things in order to smash the hulls of enemy ships. Wallis first tried out the idea by bouncing marbles across a water tub in his back garden.
The “Dambusters” raid was officially known as Operation Chastise and took place on the night of 16-17 May 1943, by 617 Squadron of the Royal Air Force led by Wing Commander Guy Gibson. The three main targets were the Möhne, Eder and Sorpe dams. May was chosen as the best time for the raid because melting Snow from the Mountains meant that the reservoirs contained by the dams would be at their fullest. The bomb itself was drum shaped and known by the codename of Upkeep.
Why blow up dams and destroy reservoirs? As well as being a water supply, the water was used to generate Electricity, and disruption of that, it was theorised, would screw up the German war production. Not everyone in the RAF Bomber Command thought it was a brilliant idea. Arthur “Bomber” Harris was among a group who thought it was an insane idea that would never work.
To ensure the bomb bounced to the right spot to do the damage it had to be dropped from an extremely low altitude: 60 feet (18m), and at a ground speed of 232mph. It was extremely dangerous and the squadron had to risk their lives even in training exercises. On the night of the mission one plane had to return to England because it lost its bomb when it touched the sea.
Needless to say, the whole operation was top secret. Initially codenamed Squadron X, 617 Squadron was made up of aircrew from Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the USA. Only their leader, Guy Gibson, knew exactly what it was the squadron had been formed to do. They spent eight weeks training intensively in low level flying at night, most of the pilots only found out what their target was at briefing on the day of the raid itself.
133 aircrew took part, 53 of them were killed and three became prisoners of war. It took five attacks to breach the Möhne Dam. Guy Gibson’s bomb exploded too soon on the first try. The next plane to try was shot down. Gibson then flew along the dam to draw the German fire. This action earned him the Victoria Cross. After the war, it was learned that possibly the biggest disaster for the Germans was that they had to deploy troops to deal with the flood damage and fix the dams, which weakened key strategic points in the conflict. It probably did help, then, and those who took part were certainly brave and heroic, but there was a massive human cost, too. About 1,300 people drowned in the resulting flood, and these were mostly civilians and prisoners of war, a fact that seemed a little downplayed by the sources I read. If the same thing happened today there would be outrage and cries of terrorism and genocide.
In 1951, Paul Brickhill wrote a book about the raid, entitled The Dam Busters.
The film came out in 1955. Wallis was played by Michael Redgrave and Gibson by Richard Todd. Wallis's daughter Elisabeth played the camera technician in the water tank sequence. The Dam Busters has been hailed as one of the best British war films and one of the greatest films of the 20th century.
The theme to the film, The Dambusters March, was written by Eric Coates, whose other famous composition is the theme for Desert Island Discs. The tune wasn’t written for the film. Coates had been experimenting with producing marches in the style of Edward Elgar and the Pomp and Circumstance March. It just so happened that the producers contacted him asking for some rousing music at about the time he finished writing it. That said, Coates wasn’t at all enthusiastic about them using his music. He reportedly hated writing music for films and actually turned the producers down several times, until they told him it was for a film of national importance, at which point he relented. Most of the soundtrack, including the theme played during the raid sequence, was composed by Leighton Lucas.
Beta
(Combat Team Series #2)
Steff was abducted by an evil alien race, the Orbs, at fourteen. Used as a weapon for years, he eventually escapes, but his problems are just beginning. How does a man support himself when his only work experience is a paper round and using an Orb bio-integrated gun?
Warlord is an alien soldier who knows little but war. When the centuries-old conflict which ravaged his planet ends, he seeks out another world where his skills are still relevant. There are always wars on Earth, it seems. However, none of Earth's powerful armies want him.
Natalie has always wanted to visit England and sees a chance to do so while using her martial arts skills, but there are sacrifices she must make in order to fulfil her dream.
Maggie resorted to crime to fund her sister's medical care. She uses her genetic variant abilities to gain access to the rooms of wealthy hotel guests. The Ballards look like rich pickings, but they are not what they seem. When Maggie targets them, little does she know that she is walking into a trap.
Hotel owner Hamilton Lonsdale puts together a combat team to pit against those of other multi-millionaires. He recruits Warlord, Natalie, Maggie and Steff along with a trained gorilla, a probability-altering alien, a stockbroker whose work of art proved to be much more than he'd bargained for, a marketing officer who can create psionic forcefields, a teleporting member of the landed gentry, and a socially awkward fixer. This is Combat Team Beta.
Steff never talks about his time with the Orbs, until he finds a woman who lived through it, too. Steff believes he has finally found happiness, but it is destined to be short-lived. He is left with an unusual legacy which he and Team Beta struggle to comprehend; including why something out there seems determined to destroy it.
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