truly amazing how the RAF was able to accomplish this in the 1940's. Both great piloting and ingenious plan for the spinning bomb! An attempt was made by Canadian engineers to emulate this feat in 2010(?) but they had a very hard time doing it!
This movie always makes me so damn proud to be British!!! Yeah ok, so this dams raid didn't really do anything to hinder the enemy, as the floods subsided, affected German production started up again shortly after and the dams themselves were repaired very quickly....but this was still one of the RAF's biggest achievements. Well done boys!
'My goodness, it's big isn't it?'='Look at the size of that thing!'
'How many guns do you think there are, Trevor?- I'd say there's about ten guns, some in the fields, some in the towers'= 'How many guns do you think, Gold 5? - Say about twenty guns, some on the surface, some on the towers.'
'Hello P for Popsy...you can go right in. I'll fly across the dam as you make your run...'='I'll cut across their axis and try to draw their fire'.
George Lucas blurring the line between homage and copying
@sourdoughabc It was still remote compared to most human warfare. KiIing by strangulation, punching, kicking, biting - or at least with axes and clubs, was much more up close and personal and took greater bravery.
The Sorpe dam was an earth bank type, not a concrete wall. Thus the bouncing bomb was ineffective against such a dam. Not that they didn't try all the same
stood at the side of one of the test bombs at east kirkby.never new how bloody big they were .guy and his boys are true british hero's ,kinda makes you sad when you see the country today its a disgrace to their memories
One of the most awesome raids of all time, if not the most awesome - given the science and the daring involved. 617 also had to fly at tree top level most of the way having to navigate at night by eye to landmarks etc. They recently put some pilots in a simulator and asked them to do the same and they couldn't do it. These guys are immortal.
@makky123 I believe here they drew the flak strafes onto the film itself. They started doing that in the silent era, and were doing it still well into the 1970's. Pretty cool concept, although painstaking considering I could probably do the same in After Effects in a matter of minutes.
lets not forget the real heros of the 2nd world war this was a mission they knew some would never come back so i say thank you barnes wallis for the bombs they hit the marks nicely and thank you to the pilots who flew that mission i salute you all god bless you
@teddybear63953 There's that good scene at the end where Wallis is feeling horrible about the men who died, and Gibson tells him that they would have gone even if they knew they were never coming back.
Lewis Burpee's (R C A F) plane S for Sugar strayed over a Night Fighter airfield on the way out and was shot down by AA fire. His bomb exploded on the runway and put the nearest night fighter station out of action. There was a full moon that night.
I heard a story that when they were practicing bombing damns in the UK, some german bombers came over and noticed there was british planes dropping bombs in britian... the german planes didn't drop any bombs in the end... was probably confused as hell! lol
the 25 episode radio show takes this story way beyond these dams: easily just as good as the movie and in many ways much better, hard as that is to believe, considering how well done this film is.
Guy Gibson flew 170 sorties, lucky to come back from every one.He was already a pilot in the RAF at the outbreak of war so was hitting the Germans from day 1 of war in 1939 until his crash at the end of 1944. A mechanical fuel transfer fault left him with no fuel resulting in a crash. He flew bombers and managed to shoot down more enemy aircraft than most fighter pilots.They don't make films like this any more and we don't have and never will have pilots like Guy Gibson VC DSO bar DFC bar
@dave41184 an Apache probably could lift it but it wouldn't have to. It would hover out of range of the AA guns and use hellfire or tomahawks. As for the Typhoon no it couldn't carry a 5 ton bomb (the Typhoon is a fighter not a bomber) but again why would it need to? Do you think the Germans would see it coming in time to shoot at it?
@fireamusmus Dams aren't legitimate targets now anyway - apparently they are prohibited in the Geneva convention , and an attack on one would be perceived as a war crime....
@dave41184 I'm pretty sure if there was a global war... war crimes would be ignored... i mean, desperate times call for desperate messures... i'm pretty sure if a country believed destroying a dam would stop the production of some arms, they would bomb it.
I just watched this movie on TV about 3 hours ago(bored the mrs to death) and here i am watching it again.As my dear old mum used to say, THEY DONT MAKE THINGS LIKE THEY USED TO, classic movie
@fireamusmus I'd have liked to have seen an Apache or Typhoon try to lift a five tonne cylindrical bomb....Both of those aircraft even today would be unsuitable for such a mission
@fireamusmus The Hellfire's a good weapon; but it'd be more use against the anti aircraft positions than the dam. Each bomb dropped here weighed around 5 tons.
@wkbfutewc they used a pressure activated depth charge. the reverse spin on the bomb before it dropped kept it close to the dam wall. as it reached 30 deep it blew up right against the wall. the water increased the explosive pressure and actually help to crack the dam walls. very clever. There is a very interesting channel 4 documentary called dambusters: building the bouncing bomb. it is in 2 parts on you tube or you can watch it on channel 4 player called 4OD
When my old man did his National Service in 54 Field Sqdn R.E , he was part of a team that had to go down and get one of those bombs that diddnt go off.
Tbh the best steel is sheffield steel, and they probs did use a Lanc that was able to fly still, because when i was on hoilday in bournemouth they had a Lanc bomber, a spitfire and a hurrcaine doing a air show
@Tube11ize Not just A Lanc, but THE Lanc.... one of only 2 left that are airworthy. We are very lucky to have one in England, and the other is in Canada.
@Kazandra1 the one here in Canada is at the Hamilton airport at the warplane museum it is about 45min from where i live, it flies regularly over my house and let me tell ya, you know when its flying over!
Though i feel sorry (in a way) for the villagers, a priest was found still clinging to the rope of the church bell, as he was killed alerting the villagers of their fate...
Don't get me wrong, I absolutely adore the Lancaster bomber as it was Britain's finest, but I always prefered the B-17 for it's sleek design, it's armament and, of course, the nose art which the crews painted on the front. We DID put the yanks to shame with the amount of missions our airmen flew compared to theirs though lol
@englishguy2010 You're right. The B-17 always get the best nose arts.
English planes crews didn't have the freedom of painting their aircraft as they want. The only ones that can beat the americans with painting were the Germans. It's difficult to see a BF-109 similar to another one.
Yeah, the Germans had some great artwork on their planes, but then again, all their aircraft were very scary looking. My favourite German bomber is the Heinkel 111.
@englishguy2010 I agree with you. When i was a child the f-14 was THE PLANE. (Thank you TOP GUN). Other planes I love are the a-10 warthog, panavia tornado and BAE harrier. I prefer ground attack planes, they're more agile.
Thankyou Top Gun indeed ;-) Yeah, the Harrier is a total babe! Saw one once at the Sunderland Air Show and it was hovering off the ground, tilting and tipping and turning. Very skillful display from the pilot (but then he's RAF. Best damn pilots in the world!) I love how the F-14 is STILL in service after all these years.
@englishguy2010 Even the israeli pilots are among the bests of the world. But I have a bad news for you: the F-14 is been retired from service in 2006. It was very expensive to maintain and a nightmare for mechanics when it was time of maintenance.
@englishguy2010 I'm sorry ! But, overall, it was in service since 1975. 30 years is a lot for a fighter. We in Italy used the F-104 for 40 years. We were the best in using the Starfighter.
@TopGunSGA As i said with englishguy2010, there was less freedom about painting the planes for the british. Take a look to ww2 italian fighters and bombers. The camouflages of our planes were amazing.
@TopGunSGA Our Lancaster PA474 has the nose art that was on a Lanc in the War that did a stellar amount of missions, and was sadly scrapped after the war.
They tested the bouncing bomb or dambuster offshore in a place called Reculver near herne bay in Kent, about 8 miles from where I live in Margate. The Brits were so good then !!
Que de vieux souvenirs. Les Dossiers de l'ecran Mars ou Avril 1972.Sir Barnes Wallis devait participer a débat, mais comme Mrs Wallis était souffrante, il n'a pu être présent. L'organisation de ce type de raids était très stricte. Lorsqu'ils on eu le gros cigare, la bombe de Dix Tonnes, le liqude explosir (le RDX) était versé dans le cylindre constituant la bombe juste avant le Raid. Et après ilsen faisient bon usage contre les objectifs ennemis avec de bons résultats.
Amazingly..when he answered the phone,the morse code was actually what he said to send. Usually they get some goof to just make a noise similar to code and it means nothing.
@handsupbud Oh wow. I never actually bothered to check if the Morse code was correct - thanks for that input. Preps to the filmmakers for that little bit of detail.
Be interesting to see what the remake of the Dambusters that Peter Jackson is working on will be like, The special effects that the WETA workshops create should be pretty good, There is a small aerodrome just north of Wellington New Zealand that has 10 replica lancasters parked there for the film, not sure if they are airworthy tho
did they actually use real Lancs that were still airworthy for this film? Or did they just have a couple that they filmed from different angles? What happened to the Lancs used in the film?
@HenryvKeiper The Lancasters were real. The bouncing bombs were still on the top secret list when the film was made, so the dummies look nothing like the originals. The fuselage of the original Lancs was cut away and the bombs tucked away in the recess, unlike the mockups in the movie that would've created a lot of drag.
@Kazandra1 I think three or possibly four airworthy Lancaster MkVII's were taken out of storage for the purpose of filming in the 50s. Think they could only get this many a) due to the cost and b) the MOD would only give the filming company certain amounts of resources. RAF crews with experience of the Lincoln and Lancaster were detatched from their units to fly the aircraft for airborne sequences in the film. I believe all the Lancasters used in the fiml were eventually scrapped.
@Kazandra1 Three Mk VIIs were released from storage and were airworthy for filiming the ground and air sequences - I believe all were struck off charge and scrapped soon afterwards
@Kazandra1 The flight sequences of the film were shot using real Avro Lancaster bombers supplied by the RAF. The aircraft, four of the final production B.VIIs.
The Lancs used were from RAF stock so at a guess they would have been returned to stock. Just another thing i found out. The bit where the Lanc flew into the hillside....it was actually a bloody B-17
@Kazandra1 Read that the Lancs were real and flown by RAF Lincoln crews. Would have eventually been scrapped along with all the other machines which should have been preserved for posterity. Look at Lancaster at War (4 volumes) you will even see Gibsons plane, which survived the war, as background to erks snapshots prior to being scrapped.
Yes. A number of Lancaster's that was still in storage were given a second life. Probably scrapped shortly after finishing filming the movie though. WW2 built aircraft were not designed for thousands of hours' flying time as we expect from modern aircrafts. The high-performance engines were fast wearing, and their alloy airframes built down to a price that allowed the maximum number of aircraft at the penalty of a shorter lifetime of them in terms of fatigue
Johnstown Pennsylvania respectfully and regretfully asks to be excused from any adulation of 617 Squadron and/or its "Dam Buster" accomplishments. To complain about this policy please send your mail to our Pittsburgh, Boulevard Of The Allies, street address...
@Kharkovkid - Not sure if anyone's aware, but the city (Johnstown) was basically wiped off the face of the earth when a damn collapsed circa 1889.
Could I just say a RIP to a Mr. Jim Harrison of Liverpool, England, who passed away 18 months ago - he was a part of 617 squdron in ww2 although he didn't take part in this raid. God bless him and all those who fought with such bravery.
Even with its primitive special effects, this remains a classic account of the raid and a worthy tribute to the young men of RAF Bomber Command, who were the best and brightest and also all volunteers and worthy of our everlasting gratitude and admiration. Apparently, Lincoln Bombers were used in the film as the 'Lancaster' had been phased out by then. Nice to read all comments & viewpoints. May they all now be where and with whom they would wish and in eternal peace and happiness.
Can you imagine being the # 3 bomber? "well, now that they know EXACTLY which way you're going to come, and they just blew the last guy right out of the sky, its your turn, go right ahead!"
I gather this is what did actually happen. Could you imagine flying straight into that sort of concentrated gunfire and holding it for all that time, with nowhere to go except straight ahead trusting your aircraft and your crew? My paternal Grandfather was a rear-gunner in the RAF during WW2. He survived. This film was noted for its documentary style and lack of fuss. If they re-made it, they should do it the same way again.
@DrugProwlingWolf@DrugProwlingWolf - Just what P Popsey (3rd plane) wanted to hear after they had been shot up going over AND the 2nd plane had been destroyed. "Come in on his starboard side and help me draw the flak". Leadership. Continued bravery in the obvious face of what was likely to happen. Determination. Thanks Guy - and all who flew with you - wherever you are now.
Those were the bad old days - how wonderful to see the dams today - repaired, storing water and producing electricity, and Germany reunified, rebuilt and blossoming...more prosperous and stable than ever, coming out of the worst economic crisis since WW II unscathed...how glad we can be to live in 2010, and not in 1943!
Uhhh... No they don`t ! Massive third world immigration making the native Brits guests and servants in their own homeland. Political correctness making it a crime to speak out against the dispossesion. Am I wrong on this? The people respect and thank you, the government piddles on your sacrifice...
Mr. Jackson, if you remake this film, *please* have one of the dambuster crewmen bump his head while entering the airplane. Star Wars fans will know what I'm talking about.
@dave41184 Noted that myself, he said it so casually, matter-of-factly that it sent a shiver down my spine. They didn't have balls of steel those guys, more like titanium.
Funny they can get a pretty good effect of a collapsing dam using a model, but insist on the most phony, patched-in images over a real dam to suggest the bombs exploding. Even an underwater air hose aimed upward (on a model) might have created a better effect.
I know, it was a long time ago, but you see those real Lancs looking so good and then you're jolted back to reality by poor special effects; it's just a shame.
I know, it's strange that they decided to use an animated reveal of water hitting rocks or whatever that was. Still, I suppose one could say it's not as bad as it COULD have been.
@HenryvKeiper Aside from the poor special effects, it gets the message across, and it seems to be pretty historically correct. Also I think when the movie was made, it was for morale and movies were made as quickly as possible. Imagine what they could do with it these days?!
@NVanWendy I always wondered if they would get someone to remake the dam explosion on a computer and patch that into the film for a re-release on DVD. Now they are going to re-make the whole thing. I hope it lives up to it's predecessor.
@TheDepotCat I didn't know they were going to remake it, Cat. That's good to hear. I just saw Avatar (3D!) last night, and man, if they can make an entire planet and its flora/fauna look that real. there are are a few Earth stories that could stand retelling! Personally, I want to see "AVG - the Flying Tigers Story," a tale that's never had a decent attempt at a movie - and no, I don't count the John Wayne one.
RIP Richard Todd,"Can we really break that?" If they remake any movie this should be the one! If only to better show the technical ingenuity involved in creating the "bouncing bomb".., and the raw courage & skill of these aviators! Had some steel ones to have been able to pull this one off!
I actually did a spoof of the trench run scene with the Dam Busters. It's one of my top watched videos - right now I see it as a featured video under "Related Videos."
truly amazing how the RAF was able to accomplish this in the 1940's. Both great piloting and ingenious plan for the spinning bomb! An attempt was made by Canadian engineers to emulate this feat in 2010(?) but they had a very hard time doing it!
nlimchua 1 week ago
Would any of you think the movie could be done today with the dog's name and the code word for the dam was busted unchanged?
zarniwoop42 1 week ago
Much respect from America. You had to have some balls to fly that low, through all that flak, and do that! Top notch job gentleman.
Trashcansam123 1 month ago
@Trashcansam123 AND.. with two large lights turned on. Nothing like saying, "I'M RIGHT HERE" !!!
zarniwoop42 1 week ago
This movie always makes me so damn proud to be British!!! Yeah ok, so this dams raid didn't really do anything to hinder the enemy, as the floods subsided, affected German production started up again shortly after and the dams themselves were repaired very quickly....but this was still one of the RAF's biggest achievements. Well done boys!
englishguy2010 1 month ago
Inspired by 633 Squadron?
Line from Dambusters "I'd say about 10 guns, some in the fields and some on the towers"
From Star Wars "I'd say about 20 guns, some on the surface and some on the towers."
Dambusters "My goodness, It's big isn't it!"
Star Wars" Look at the size of that thing!"
Dambusters “I’ll fly across the dam as you make your run, and try and draw the flak off you.”
Star Wars “I'm going to cut across the axis and try and draw their fire.”
skybird137 1 month ago
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People who like this movie are faggots
themenaceanish 2 months ago
'My goodness, it's big isn't it?'='Look at the size of that thing!'
'How many guns do you think there are, Trevor?- I'd say there's about ten guns, some in the fields, some in the towers'= 'How many guns do you think, Gold 5? - Say about twenty guns, some on the surface, some on the towers.'
'Hello P for Popsy...you can go right in. I'll fly across the dam as you make your run...'='I'll cut across their axis and try to draw their fire'.
George Lucas blurring the line between homage and copying
MrMoorkey 2 months ago
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bravery beyond belief. it was not advanced technology with someone pressing a button thousand of miles away. it was man and machine eye to eye!
sourdoughabc 3 months ago
bravery beyond belief. it was not advanced technology with someone pressing a button thousand of miles away. it was man and machine eye to eye!
sourdoughabc 3 months ago
@sourdoughabc It was still remote compared to most human warfare. KiIing by strangulation, punching, kicking, biting - or at least with axes and clubs, was much more up close and personal and took greater bravery.
ushoys 3 months ago
@ushoys This was WWII, mush of the fighting was done by infantrymen with rifles and grenades and tanks.
warwatcher91 2 months ago
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If Muslims had made 'The Dam Busters' would they have called it 'Ramadam'
emilebradford 4 months ago
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emilebradford 4 months ago
The Sorpe dam was an earth bank type, not a concrete wall. Thus the bouncing bomb was ineffective against such a dam. Not that they didn't try all the same
Cachibym 4 months ago 2
Red October standing by!
Colossus3999 4 months ago
stood at the side of one of the test bombs at east kirkby.never new how bloody big they were .guy and his boys are true british hero's ,kinda makes you sad when you see the country today its a disgrace to their memories
clammy666 5 months ago
these damn busters!
persiangeorgiev 5 months ago
Which of the other two failed to be breached I know there was Murnhar, Edner and A third one I can't remember
TheHillbillyHermitt1 5 months ago
@TheHillbillyHermitt1 The Möhne and Eder were breached , the Sorpe dam was damaged but remained intact
dave41184 5 months ago
Use the force Luke
bustermk2 7 months ago
One of the most awesome raids of all time, if not the most awesome - given the science and the daring involved. 617 also had to fly at tree top level most of the way having to navigate at night by eye to landmarks etc. They recently put some pilots in a simulator and asked them to do the same and they couldn't do it. These guys are immortal.
Buggsy61 7 months ago
Have a look in my Canal, because I filmed the true story about the Edertalsperre.
57Tanja 7 months ago
just out of interest, how do the do the anti aircraft effects on these old war films?
makky123 7 months ago
@makky123 I believe here they drew the flak strafes onto the film itself. They started doing that in the silent era, and were doing it still well into the 1970's. Pretty cool concept, although painstaking considering I could probably do the same in After Effects in a matter of minutes.
HenryvKeiper 7 months ago 2
@HenryvKeiper Thanks for the reply.
makky123 7 months ago
and a few thousand krauts killed
sunnymarky 7 months ago
it only stoped production fore a short time
22jdrawli 8 months ago
What about the ground crew> Can't fly without them
hawickman 8 months ago
lets not forget the real heros of the 2nd world war this was a mission they knew some would never come back so i say thank you barnes wallis for the bombs they hit the marks nicely and thank you to the pilots who flew that mission i salute you all god bless you
teddybear63953 8 months ago 5
@teddybear63953 There's that good scene at the end where Wallis is feeling horrible about the men who died, and Gibson tells him that they would have gone even if they knew they were never coming back.
HenryvKeiper 8 months ago 3
Lucas copied it almost philologically... but the original is better.
Silmacar 9 months ago
Apparently Gibson was not a particular likeable chap however Air Marshall Harris gave him quite an epitaph calling him:
" As great a warrior as these Islands ever bred. "
cupmyplums 9 months ago 2
@cupmyplums He didn't have to be likable - he inspired respect in those he commanded and was there to lead
dave41184 7 months ago
Lewis Burpee's (R C A F) plane S for Sugar strayed over a Night Fighter airfield on the way out and was shot down by AA fire. His bomb exploded on the runway and put the nearest night fighter station out of action. There was a full moon that night.
wkbfutewc 10 months ago
Amazingly two guys got out of that plane that was shot down.
When captured by the Germans and still in shock he asked for water. To which came the reply
"Wasser? Thanks to you we have plenty of wasser."
wkbfutewc 10 months ago
I heard a story that when they were practicing bombing damns in the UK, some german bombers came over and noticed there was british planes dropping bombs in britian... the german planes didn't drop any bombs in the end... was probably confused as hell! lol
AngloDaxon 10 months ago
"Use the Force, Luke."
MyMerlin1 11 months ago
the 25 episode radio show takes this story way beyond these dams: easily just as good as the movie and in many ways much better, hard as that is to believe, considering how well done this film is.
doctornoooo 11 months ago
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Fantastic film....British stuff.
douglas18741892 11 months ago
Fantastic film....British ingenuity.
douglas18741892 11 months ago
Guy Gibson flew 170 sorties, lucky to come back from every one.He was already a pilot in the RAF at the outbreak of war so was hitting the Germans from day 1 of war in 1939 until his crash at the end of 1944. A mechanical fuel transfer fault left him with no fuel resulting in a crash. He flew bombers and managed to shoot down more enemy aircraft than most fighter pilots.They don't make films like this any more and we don't have and never will have pilots like Guy Gibson VC DSO bar DFC bar
25038516 11 months ago 3
@dave41184 an Apache probably could lift it but it wouldn't have to. It would hover out of range of the AA guns and use hellfire or tomahawks. As for the Typhoon no it couldn't carry a 5 ton bomb (the Typhoon is a fighter not a bomber) but again why would it need to? Do you think the Germans would see it coming in time to shoot at it?
fireamusmus 11 months ago
@fireamusmus Dams aren't legitimate targets now anyway - apparently they are prohibited in the Geneva convention , and an attack on one would be perceived as a war crime....
dave41184 11 months ago
@dave41184 I'm pretty sure if there was a global war... war crimes would be ignored... i mean, desperate times call for desperate messures... i'm pretty sure if a country believed destroying a dam would stop the production of some arms, they would bomb it.
AngloDaxon 10 months ago
I just watched this movie on TV about 3 hours ago(bored the mrs to death) and here i am watching it again.As my dear old mum used to say, THEY DONT MAKE THINGS LIKE THEY USED TO, classic movie
southlondon63 11 months ago
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To this I say an Apache with a few Hellfires or a Typhoon would have done a better job!
fireamusmus 11 months ago
@fireamusmus Well, they didn't have too many Apaches back then :P
HenryvKeiper 11 months ago 14
@HenryvKeiper not even helicopters .D
yannick245 2 months ago
@fireamusmus I'd have liked to have seen an Apache or Typhoon try to lift a five tonne cylindrical bomb....Both of those aircraft even today would be unsuitable for such a mission
dave41184 11 months ago
@fireamusmus Ya not that hard for a apache to use advance targeting systems to take out their target. No skill required.
What the boys in the WW's had was true grits and skill. Nothing like today.
MrFizbanic 10 months ago
@fireamusmus The Hellfire's a good weapon; but it'd be more use against the anti aircraft positions than the dam. Each bomb dropped here weighed around 5 tons.
RattytheSecond 10 months ago
@fireamusmus
I wasn't aware that the Hellfire or Typhoon missile carried FIVE TONS of explosive.
So how would they explode them under water to produce the cushion effect required to break the concrete?
wkbfutewc 10 months ago
@wkbfutewc they used a pressure activated depth charge. the reverse spin on the bomb before it dropped kept it close to the dam wall. as it reached 30 deep it blew up right against the wall. the water increased the explosive pressure and actually help to crack the dam walls. very clever. There is a very interesting channel 4 documentary called dambusters: building the bouncing bomb. it is in 2 parts on you tube or you can watch it on channel 4 player called 4OD
spikkyboy 9 months ago
@fireamusmus troll^^
petsell93 7 months ago
@fireamusmus Those aircrafts did not have the range the Avro Lancaster had ...
jetenginestar 2 months ago
It´s Eder Dam?
MrScott8 11 months ago
Those German gunners had to be the worst shots on planet Earth!! They must have been shooting blanks. I know, its only a movie.
gewerhmann 1 year ago
@gewerhmann And now we know where Lucas got the idea for the Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy, as well.
billd66 2 weeks ago
When my old man did his National Service in 54 Field Sqdn R.E , he was part of a team that had to go down and get one of those bombs that diddnt go off.
BradBrassman 1 year ago
In the actual raid the Lancs flew at 60 ft,but in the film they flew at 40ft for greater effect.
bermudarailway 1 year ago
This seriously helped me with my homework :D, Seems more interesting when your watching it on youtube then in school, haha strange x
xoKnightRiderox 1 year ago
00:18 - 00:26. Didn't they lift practically those exact lines and plonk them into the Death Star fight?
MrMoorkey 1 year ago
Interesting thought....why are they wearing oxygen masks at this altitude?
skitzostudios 1 year ago
@skitzostudios They had radios built into the masks.
gunnermorph01 1 year ago
its now illegal to bomb dams during a conflict so the action of these brave airman will never be repeated
pristinebob 1 year ago
Tbh the best steel is sheffield steel, and they probs did use a Lanc that was able to fly still, because when i was on hoilday in bournemouth they had a Lanc bomber, a spitfire and a hurrcaine doing a air show
Tube11ize 1 year ago
@Tube11ize Not just A Lanc, but THE Lanc.... one of only 2 left that are airworthy. We are very lucky to have one in England, and the other is in Canada.
Kazandra1 1 year ago
@Kazandra1 the one here in Canada is at the Hamilton airport at the warplane museum it is about 45min from where i live, it flies regularly over my house and let me tell ya, you know when its flying over!
frosty012 1 year ago
@frosty012 that's fantastic! :-)
Kazandra1 1 year ago
@Kazandra1 I have broken at least 3 screen doors as a result of hearing those 4 rolls royce engines coming up lol
frosty012 1 year ago
Why did they not use bombs to disable the anti-aircannons in the towers?
AlfaAxel 1 year ago
Wonder why the RAF used a different phonetic alphabet e.g. M Mother not M Mike
ManOnTheMoon2 1 year ago
Use the force...
Genwarren12345 1 year ago
HAHAHA Those nazis didn't know what hit em...
Though i feel sorry (in a way) for the villagers, a priest was found still clinging to the rope of the church bell, as he was killed alerting the villagers of their fate...
MilitaryAircraft101 1 year ago
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what a brave man guy gibson was and his crew r.i.p
mrmattusftw 1 year ago
what a brave man guy gibson was and his crew r.ip
mrmattusftw 1 year ago
The B-17 is a very nice plane, but the Lancaster got much sex appeal !!
Porsche917Longtail 1 year ago
Nah, the B-17 is way sexier lol
englishguy2010 1 year ago
@englishguy2010 Probably I like it most due to night missions
Porsche917Longtail 1 year ago
Don't get me wrong, I absolutely adore the Lancaster bomber as it was Britain's finest, but I always prefered the B-17 for it's sleek design, it's armament and, of course, the nose art which the crews painted on the front. We DID put the yanks to shame with the amount of missions our airmen flew compared to theirs though lol
englishguy2010 1 year ago
@englishguy2010 You're right. The B-17 always get the best nose arts.
English planes crews didn't have the freedom of painting their aircraft as they want. The only ones that can beat the americans with painting were the Germans. It's difficult to see a BF-109 similar to another one.
Porsche917Longtail 1 year ago
Yeah, the Germans had some great artwork on their planes, but then again, all their aircraft were very scary looking. My favourite German bomber is the Heinkel 111.
englishguy2010 1 year ago
@englishguy2010 My favourite ones are the Heinkel 111, 177 Greif, 219 Uhu, the FW-190 D-9, TA-152 and Horten HO-IX.
Porsche917Longtail 1 year ago
You don't like the Dornier or the Junkers Ju88 and Ju87?
englishguy2010 1 year ago
@englishguy2010 Oh sorry, i forgot them. I like them too !!!
Porsche917Longtail 1 year ago
@englishguy2010 The best ju87 is the anti tank version
Porsche917Longtail 1 year ago
How about modern jets?? I reckon the F14 Tomcat is sexy as fuck lol
englishguy2010 1 year ago
@englishguy2010 I agree with you. When i was a child the f-14 was THE PLANE. (Thank you TOP GUN). Other planes I love are the a-10 warthog, panavia tornado and BAE harrier. I prefer ground attack planes, they're more agile.
Porsche917Longtail 1 year ago
Thankyou Top Gun indeed ;-) Yeah, the Harrier is a total babe! Saw one once at the Sunderland Air Show and it was hovering off the ground, tilting and tipping and turning. Very skillful display from the pilot (but then he's RAF. Best damn pilots in the world!) I love how the F-14 is STILL in service after all these years.
englishguy2010 1 year ago
@englishguy2010 Even the israeli pilots are among the bests of the world. But I have a bad news for you: the F-14 is been retired from service in 2006. It was very expensive to maintain and a nightmare for mechanics when it was time of maintenance.
Porsche917Longtail 1 year ago
That IS bad news :-(
englishguy2010 1 year ago
@englishguy2010 I'm sorry ! But, overall, it was in service since 1975. 30 years is a lot for a fighter. We in Italy used the F-104 for 40 years. We were the best in using the Starfighter.
Porsche917Longtail 1 year ago
@Porsche917Longtail There were quite a few British planes that had noseart during WWII
TopGunSGA 1 year ago
@TopGunSGA As i said with englishguy2010, there was less freedom about painting the planes for the british. Take a look to ww2 italian fighters and bombers. The camouflages of our planes were amazing.
Porsche917Longtail 1 year ago
@TopGunSGA Our Lancaster PA474 has the nose art that was on a Lanc in the War that did a stellar amount of missions, and was sadly scrapped after the war.
Kazandra1 1 year ago
@englishguy2010 Yeah but the Lanc could carry a bigger payload
TopGunSGA 1 year ago
It certainly could! :-)
englishguy2010 1 year ago
Have they ever made a video game based on this?
lewisner 1 year ago
They tested the bouncing bomb or dambuster offshore in a place called Reculver near herne bay in Kent, about 8 miles from where I live in Margate. The Brits were so good then !!
britanichris 1 year ago
Que de vieux souvenirs. Les Dossiers de l'ecran Mars ou Avril 1972.Sir Barnes Wallis devait participer a débat, mais comme Mrs Wallis était souffrante, il n'a pu être présent. L'organisation de ce type de raids était très stricte. Lorsqu'ils on eu le gros cigare, la bombe de Dix Tonnes, le liqude explosir (le RDX) était versé dans le cylindre constituant la bombe juste avant le Raid. Et après ilsen faisient bon usage contre les objectifs ennemis avec de bons résultats.
bilou1955 1 year ago
Amazingly..when he answered the phone,the morse code was actually what he said to send. Usually they get some goof to just make a noise similar to code and it means nothing.
handsupbud 1 year ago 10
@handsupbud Oh wow. I never actually bothered to check if the Morse code was correct - thanks for that input. Preps to the filmmakers for that little bit of detail.
HenryvKeiper 1 year ago
Lancasters were like all planes built to survive a short war. The planes were from the last production run and had been in storage.
Due to the poverty in Britain at the time they were mostly chopped up after filming.
brssgirl 11 months ago
@handsupbud cool!
DLPBurke 9 months ago
Be interesting to see what the remake of the Dambusters that Peter Jackson is working on will be like, The special effects that the WETA workshops create should be pretty good, There is a small aerodrome just north of Wellington New Zealand that has 10 replica lancasters parked there for the film, not sure if they are airworthy tho
stockcar269s 1 year ago
The run of the gauntlet is always challenging.
tarantellaonline 1 year ago
@tarantellaonline god i know
chasbanner 1 year ago
did they actually use real Lancs that were still airworthy for this film? Or did they just have a couple that they filmed from different angles? What happened to the Lancs used in the film?
Kazandra1 1 year ago
@Kazandra1 Good question, and I don't know. So I'll respond to you in the hopes that someone will see this post up top and respond to you.
HenryvKeiper 1 year ago
@HenryvKeiper The Lancasters were real. The bouncing bombs were still on the top secret list when the film was made, so the dummies look nothing like the originals. The fuselage of the original Lancs was cut away and the bombs tucked away in the recess, unlike the mockups in the movie that would've created a lot of drag.
fatsacks70 1 year ago
@HenryvKeiper They used real Lancasters - they weren't scarce when the movie was made in 1955.
pete8751 1 year ago
@Kazandra1 I think three or possibly four airworthy Lancaster MkVII's were taken out of storage for the purpose of filming in the 50s. Think they could only get this many a) due to the cost and b) the MOD would only give the filming company certain amounts of resources. RAF crews with experience of the Lincoln and Lancaster were detatched from their units to fly the aircraft for airborne sequences in the film. I believe all the Lancasters used in the fiml were eventually scrapped.
dave41184 1 year ago
@Kazandra1 The film used 4 airworthy Lancs that were lent to them by the RAF
TopGunSGA 1 year ago
@Kazandra1 Three Mk VIIs were released from storage and were airworthy for filiming the ground and air sequences - I believe all were struck off charge and scrapped soon afterwards
dave41184 1 year ago
@Kazandra1 The flight sequences of the film were shot using real Avro Lancaster bombers supplied by the RAF. The aircraft, four of the final production B.VIIs.
The Lancs used were from RAF stock so at a guess they would have been returned to stock. Just another thing i found out. The bit where the Lanc flew into the hillside....it was actually a bloody B-17
gunnermorph01 1 year ago
@Kazandra1 Read that the Lancs were real and flown by RAF Lincoln crews. Would have eventually been scrapped along with all the other machines which should have been preserved for posterity. Look at Lancaster at War (4 volumes) you will even see Gibsons plane, which survived the war, as background to erks snapshots prior to being scrapped.
ukdotcom 11 months ago
@Kazandra1
Yes. A number of Lancaster's that was still in storage were given a second life. Probably scrapped shortly after finishing filming the movie though. WW2 built aircraft were not designed for thousands of hours' flying time as we expect from modern aircrafts. The high-performance engines were fast wearing, and their alloy airframes built down to a price that allowed the maximum number of aircraft at the penalty of a shorter lifetime of them in terms of fatigue
knutgordon 11 months ago
@Kazandra1 They actually used real airworthy Lancs for the film. The Lancs were scrapped later.
Armoredbrummy 11 months ago
Johnstown Pennsylvania respectfully and regretfully asks to be excused from any adulation of 617 Squadron and/or its "Dam Buster" accomplishments. To complain about this policy please send your mail to our Pittsburgh, Boulevard Of The Allies, street address...
Kharkovkid 1 year ago
@Kharkovkid - Not sure if anyone's aware, but the city (Johnstown) was basically wiped off the face of the earth when a damn collapsed circa 1889.
Could I just say a RIP to a Mr. Jim Harrison of Liverpool, England, who passed away 18 months ago - he was a part of 617 squdron in ww2 although he didn't take part in this raid. God bless him and all those who fought with such bravery.
erial08081 1 year ago
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Kharkovkid 1 year ago
P.S. Sorry, I forgot , many thanks to HenryvKeiper & YT for the post - splendid!
tubian224 1 year ago
Even with its primitive special effects, this remains a classic account of the raid and a worthy tribute to the young men of RAF Bomber Command, who were the best and brightest and also all volunteers and worthy of our everlasting gratitude and admiration. Apparently, Lincoln Bombers were used in the film as the 'Lancaster' had been phased out by then. Nice to read all comments & viewpoints. May they all now be where and with whom they would wish and in eternal peace and happiness.
tubian224 1 year ago
Can you imagine being the # 3 bomber? "well, now that they know EXACTLY which way you're going to come, and they just blew the last guy right out of the sky, its your turn, go right ahead!"
davidrodgersNJ 1 year ago
The Dam Biusters - a tale of the triumph of ingenuity, hope and bravery over adversity.
randomdave30 1 year ago
The Dambusters were 617 squadron.
bankslord 1 year ago
I gather this is what did actually happen. Could you imagine flying straight into that sort of concentrated gunfire and holding it for all that time, with nowhere to go except straight ahead trusting your aircraft and your crew? My paternal Grandfather was a rear-gunner in the RAF during WW2. He survived. This film was noted for its documentary style and lack of fuss. If they re-made it, they should do it the same way again.
malcs0 1 year ago 3
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@malcs0 This film was noted for its documentary style and lack of fuss. If they re-made it, they should do it the same way again.
If they do remake this great film,it will be the yanks that did the bombing....
after all they DID win the Second World War... or so they keep telling use...
seanmcgrth 10 months ago
next you will tell me the thunder birds was badly acted,
grunt182820 1 year ago
@grunt182820 Thunderbirds had the best acting EVAH!
HenryvKeiper 1 year ago
@grunt182820 Barnes Willis just google him my hero
MrStatic62 1 year ago
GOD BLESS THEM FOREVER
AND GUY GIBSON WAS AN EXTRAORDINARY MAN
Frenchman06600 1 year ago
My great great uncle, Henry Maudsley was in the dambuster raids, a true legend. Hopefully the remake will be made! Thanks for giving us our freedom.
vanmorg 1 year ago
@vanmorg A legend indeed , lucky to be related to someone like that!
dave41184 1 year ago
So, when will Peter Jackson make his version?
MrSunlander 1 year ago
It really is close to Star Wars isn't it. Film and script.
Dambusters - "How many guns do you think their are Trevor?" "I'd say about ten guns, some in the field and some on the towers"
Star Wars "How many guns d'ya reckon gold 5?" "Say about twenty guns some on the surface, some on the towers."
Dambusters - "I'll fly across that dam as you make your run and try and draw the flack off you"
Star Wars - "I'm gunna cut across the axis and try and draw their fire.
Cheeky Lucas! :)
thistimeitmatters 1 year ago
@DrugProwlingWolf @DrugProwlingWolf - Just what P Popsey (3rd plane) wanted to hear after they had been shot up going over AND the 2nd plane had been destroyed. "Come in on his starboard side and help me draw the flak". Leadership. Continued bravery in the obvious face of what was likely to happen. Determination. Thanks Guy - and all who flew with you - wherever you are now.
zedthreefourfive 1 year ago
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zedthreefourfive 1 year ago
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zedthreefourfive 1 year ago
NVanWendy - regardless of the artistic merit - show some damn respect - without people like this you don't get to do what you do !!!!!
ajbond41 1 year ago
I have stood on this dam, it was a strange moment looking across the water humming the theme tune 2 myself.
5872steve 1 year ago
I hope the remake goes ahead. The memory of these brave men and their like needs to kept alive.
MrValiant61 1 year ago
Those were the bad old days - how wonderful to see the dams today - repaired, storing water and producing electricity, and Germany reunified, rebuilt and blossoming...more prosperous and stable than ever, coming out of the worst economic crisis since WW II unscathed...how glad we can be to live in 2010, and not in 1943!
MrOptimist2010 1 year ago
Interesting comments about the effects. They do seem a bit of a let down today, but when I first saw it the effects were AWESOME!
JimTLonW6 1 year ago
i love 617 SQN there heros we must never forget them
moggyparty 1 year ago
"Your country respects and thanks you" Skipy936
Uhhh... No they don`t ! Massive third world immigration making the native Brits guests and servants in their own homeland. Political correctness making it a crime to speak out against the dispossesion. Am I wrong on this? The people respect and thank you, the government piddles on your sacrifice...
Kharkovkid 1 year ago
Does anyone know where u can find the dambusters, just to look at them. Like in a museum or somewhere
flightsimulatorXpert 1 year ago
Gestern noch drüber gefahren.. berührt mich voll weil das in meiner Nähe passierte
19Diiana93 1 year ago
My friend Gary Eastman,has already made the jackets for the remake!
Peter Jackson will be dammed if he uses the dogs real name "nigger" but he will be more dammed if he dosn't as it is historical fact!
The term "nigger" is/was an American racist use of the word not a British one in the 1940s.
Nigger is latin for black-nothing more.
guidedchaos64 1 year ago 8
Mr. Jackson, if you remake this film, *please* have one of the dambuster crewmen bump his head while entering the airplane. Star Wars fans will know what I'm talking about.
daddia 2 years ago
I dnt think the remake will take any inspiration from star wars.....being as this raid was real and star wars isn't.....
dave41184 1 year ago 5
Balls of British Steel.
Spraycando 2 years ago 15
THis movie always did and always will me me damned proud to be British!!!! God bless the Royal Air Force!!!!
englishguy2005 2 years ago 6
"Stand by to pull me out of the seat if I get hit" - Gibson , always focused on the mission but a sobering thought...
dave41184 2 years ago 5
@dave41184 Noted that myself, he said it so casually, matter-of-factly that it sent a shiver down my spine. They didn't have balls of steel those guys, more like titanium.
erial08081 1 year ago
Funny they can get a pretty good effect of a collapsing dam using a model, but insist on the most phony, patched-in images over a real dam to suggest the bombs exploding. Even an underwater air hose aimed upward (on a model) might have created a better effect.
I know, it was a long time ago, but you see those real Lancs looking so good and then you're jolted back to reality by poor special effects; it's just a shame.
NVanWendy 2 years ago
I know, it's strange that they decided to use an animated reveal of water hitting rocks or whatever that was. Still, I suppose one could say it's not as bad as it COULD have been.
HenryvKeiper 2 years ago
@HenryvKeiper Aside from the poor special effects, it gets the message across, and it seems to be pretty historically correct. Also I think when the movie was made, it was for morale and movies were made as quickly as possible. Imagine what they could do with it these days?!
Nato61 1 year ago
@NVanWendy I always wondered if they would get someone to remake the dam explosion on a computer and patch that into the film for a re-release on DVD. Now they are going to re-make the whole thing. I hope it lives up to it's predecessor.
TheDepotCat 1 year ago
@TheDepotCat I didn't know they were going to remake it, Cat. That's good to hear. I just saw Avatar (3D!) last night, and man, if they can make an entire planet and its flora/fauna look that real. there are are a few Earth stories that could stand retelling! Personally, I want to see "AVG - the Flying Tigers Story," a tale that's never had a decent attempt at a movie - and no, I don't count the John Wayne one.
NVanWendy 1 year ago
@NVanWendy
This was late 50`s
You must be a moron....
voderick 1 year ago
@voderick u moron
MrStatic62 1 year ago
RIP Richard Todd,"Can we really break that?" If they remake any movie this should be the one! If only to better show the technical ingenuity involved in creating the "bouncing bomb".., and the raw courage & skill of these aviators! Had some steel ones to have been able to pull this one off!
xtremenortherner 2 years ago
@xtremenortherner they are remaking it =D peter jackson is 2011 i think its out
james2k838 2 years ago
those jerrys must have shit themselves when they heard those Lanc engines bearing down on them .....
ravensmead 2 years ago 2
An incredible story.
frantic1971 2 years ago
RIP Gentlemen, your country respects & thanks you.
skipy936 2 years ago 18
Holy crap...this things is practically word for word, scene for scene with Star Wars.
MagMag123 2 years ago
I actually did a spoof of the trench run scene with the Dam Busters. It's one of my top watched videos - right now I see it as a featured video under "Related Videos."
HenryvKeiper 2 years ago
Wor4d for word, almost shot for shot
jochannon 2 years ago
One great war film
Glenn1967ful 2 years ago
Respect to these guys and respect to Richard Todd
Glenn1967ful 2 years ago 2
RIP Richard Todd!
SerenissimaRepublica 2 years ago 5
RIP Mr Todd - you left us a great legacy in this film. It will never be bettered.
SagansMoon 2 years ago 2
Indeed. RIP Mr Todd. A true hero. Well said that chap! NEVER bettered! Well done to our Aussie cousins too, for all their efforts in WW I and II.
APRIL141958model 2 years ago 4