Avro Lancaster ED909 Giclée Art Print

High quality art print of Avro Lancaster ED909, 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 an 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 ED909, designated by No. 617 Squadron as AJ-P, was flown by Martin, with Whittaker, Leggo, Chambers, Hay, Foxlee and Simpson crewing the aircraft. Flying with the first wave of Lancaster bombers, ED909 dropped its bouncing bomb on Möhne Dam, but missed the target. The Lancaster made a safe return, however, and five of the crew were decorated: a DSO for Martin, DFM for Simpson, and DFCs for Leggo, Chambers, and Hay.

The crew would continue to fly together after the Dambusters Raid. In February 1944, Hay would sadly lose his life when their Lancaster was struck by a cannon shell. Martin successfully landed the Lancaster, and Hay was buried in Cagliari. The rest of the crew were more fortunate, and survived the war.

This illustration by Rob Wisdom is a high-quality Giclée art print on cotton-rich fine art paper.