High quality art print of Avro Lancaster ED906, an Avro Lancaster B.III (Special) of No. 617 Squadron, specially refitted to take part in Operation Chastise, better known as the Dambusters Raid.
The Dambusters Raid saw nineteen Lancasters of No. 617 Squadron attack several dams in the Ruhr Valley in Germany: the Möhne, Eder, Sorpe, and Edersee dams. Flying on the night of 16/17 May 1943, each of the Lancasters carried a Vickers Type 464 'Upkeep' mine, better known as a bouncing bomb, which Barnes Wallis had designed specifically for the mission. The Lancasters flew in low to avoid detection, and bounced their Upkeep mines along the surface of the water and into the dam.
Lancaster ED906, or AJ-J within No. 617 Squadron, was crewed by Flight Lieutenant David Maltby, Sergeant William Hatton, Sergeant Vivian Nicholson, Sergeant Anthony Stone, Pilot Officer John Fort, Sergeant Victor Hill, and Harold Simmonds.
ED906 flew with the first wave of Lancaster bombers, targeting the Möhne Dam, and successfully struck and breached the structure of the dam with its bouncing bomb. ED906 then safely returned to Britain, where Maltby received a DSO, Nicholson received a DFM, and Fort received a DFC.
Sadly, none of the crew would survive the war. All seven lost their lives on 15 September 1943 when their Lancaster crashed into the North Sea.
This illustration by Rob Wisdom is a high-quality Giclée art print on cotton-rich fine art paper.
