Remembrance Sunday has come and gone for another year, and once again it has brought to mind an event that occurred a full 40+ years before I was born, yet was so influential that it basically shaped my educational motivation from the age of 11+, and is probably the sole reason as to why I have such a steadfast patriotism towards my country - regardless of my dislike of the prima donnas in the England football team!
The Dambuster mission wasn't the definitive mission of WW2 by any means, and by highlighting this mission I'm not disregarding the harrowing heroics on the beaches of Normandy.
But the thing that makes the Dambusters so special for me is how it is was a mix of mental ingenuity and physical skill. The ultimate combination of scientific and dextrous brilliance.
For those who don't know what the hell I'm referring to, the Dambusters is the popular term given to a successful bombing mission in WW2, targeting the Möhne, Sorpe and Eder Dams in Germany; central to the German manufacturing system.
The dams were an obvious target, but the current bombs of the day (1943) could not accurately damage them, and torpedoes could be stopped by nets in the lakes.
Enter Barnes Wallis! A British scientist, he invented a bomb that literally bounced along the surface of the water and to explode at the exact point of impact with the dam.
This ingenuity was combined with the skill of pilots to carry off the mission. The bombs had to be dropped at a certain height (exceptionally low to the ground) and a certain distance from the dam to be successful. To do this, the pilots used manual apparatus to measure distance from the dams, and a system of lights to determine height.
To highlight how f***ing insane that idea was, here's a GIF.
Yet amazingly, they pulled it off, destroying two of the three dams.
The impact on the war wasn't as sizeable as one would have hoped, but for me the sheer nerve of the entire thing just awes me. Flying at extremely low altitudes with the most basic of aerial technology, attempted new methods just on the off-chance it comes off... Bravery and brilliance.
Whenever I feel annoyed at Britain, or whenever I question why people who live here give a crap about our nationality as a whole, I remind myself of the Dambusters and the brave people who flew those Lancasters for the greater good.
I'm a proud Scouser for many reasons, but at least I'll always have a reason to be a proud Brit too.
RIP to the 53 pilots who lost their lives in that operation and, to be fair, the thousands of Germans who lost their lives too - but that's the horror of war, and shouldn't deflect from the overall brilliance of this mission.
And for anyone who hasn't watched the film The Dambusters, and/or haven't found out more about Operation Chastise, I urge you to do so! It'll restore your faith in the ability of man to overcome the most daunting obstacles.
The Dambuster mission wasn't the definitive mission of WW2 by any means, and by highlighting this mission I'm not disregarding the harrowing heroics on the beaches of Normandy.
But the thing that makes the Dambusters so special for me is how it is was a mix of mental ingenuity and physical skill. The ultimate combination of scientific and dextrous brilliance.
For those who don't know what the hell I'm referring to, the Dambusters is the popular term given to a successful bombing mission in WW2, targeting the Möhne, Sorpe and Eder Dams in Germany; central to the German manufacturing system.
The dams were an obvious target, but the current bombs of the day (1943) could not accurately damage them, and torpedoes could be stopped by nets in the lakes.
Enter Barnes Wallis! A British scientist, he invented a bomb that literally bounced along the surface of the water and to explode at the exact point of impact with the dam.
This ingenuity was combined with the skill of pilots to carry off the mission. The bombs had to be dropped at a certain height (exceptionally low to the ground) and a certain distance from the dam to be successful. To do this, the pilots used manual apparatus to measure distance from the dams, and a system of lights to determine height.
To highlight how f***ing insane that idea was, here's a GIF.
Yet amazingly, they pulled it off, destroying two of the three dams.
The impact on the war wasn't as sizeable as one would have hoped, but for me the sheer nerve of the entire thing just awes me. Flying at extremely low altitudes with the most basic of aerial technology, attempted new methods just on the off-chance it comes off... Bravery and brilliance.
Whenever I feel annoyed at Britain, or whenever I question why people who live here give a crap about our nationality as a whole, I remind myself of the Dambusters and the brave people who flew those Lancasters for the greater good.
I'm a proud Scouser for many reasons, but at least I'll always have a reason to be a proud Brit too.
RIP to the 53 pilots who lost their lives in that operation and, to be fair, the thousands of Germans who lost their lives too - but that's the horror of war, and shouldn't deflect from the overall brilliance of this mission.
And for anyone who hasn't watched the film The Dambusters, and/or haven't found out more about Operation Chastise, I urge you to do so! It'll restore your faith in the ability of man to overcome the most daunting obstacles.
