Avro Lancaster ED929 Giclée Art Print

High quality art print of Avro Lancaster ED929, 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 ED929, designated as AJ-L within No. 617 Squadron, was piloted by Shannon, Henderson, Walker, Goodale, Sumpter, Jagger, and Buckley during the Dambusters Raid. Flying in the first of the three waves, ED929 scored a hit against Eder Dam with its bouncing bomb, though the explosion did not create a noticeable breach, and made a safe return. Shannon was awarded a DSO, Walker a DFC, and Sumpter a DFM.

Six of the crew would survive the war, while Brian Jagger sadly did not. Transferred to a training unit in spring 1944, Jagger lost his life in an accidental crash shortly thereafter.

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