Yes Cem an amazing British achievement, which thank goodness always comes to the forefront in times of national crisis. Although the long term effects on German industry in the Ruhr Valley was limited, this raid did untold good for the morale of the British public and proved we were now able to hit back at Nazi Germany after so many early setbacks and huge disappointments. The end of WW2 could be envisaged, with the Germans now losing on every front.
I have lost count how many times I read the book, watched the film, and thought about the tremendous bravery of all the pilots, including Wing Commander Guy Gibson.
I felt then , and still feel even more now, the honour that I had the privilege of actually being in the same room as Sir Barnes Wallis when I visited the BAC Brooklands, Surrey, site with a school trip in 1967 when they were manufacturing the wings for Concorde. An absolutely fascinating man who explained to our group about future supersonic flight, and showed us a model of his SSC craft for the generation after Concorde! He was still then alive with excitement and pure enthusiasm about aircraft, along with the wonders of aeronautical engineering 8-) 8-) 8-) 8-) 8-)
..............and in honour of 617 Squadron, to the men who were the Dambusters, and the 53 crew who never returned:
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r7Si2H479Es[/media]