today is November 12th, 1944, the day Tirpitz was sunk by the Tallboys launched by the British Lancaster ~ Dambusters in Tromso. many strange things resulted from this sinking with many losses of life for the KM. Still some unresolved issues as to where JG 5 was and why not in the area to protect the Ship on this raid.
....and you can still cause uproar at reunions by suggesting to 617 Squadron veterans that maybe 9 Squadron actually sank her, and saying to 9 Squadron men that for sure it was 617......
I have such little info Martin how many Lancs and from what squadrons were on this mission.... ? it all seems so relative now but how stupid to think the ship of this size could be holed up for that length of time in a small hole and not be found
There were thirteen Lancasters from 9 Squadron and eighteen from 617. Each carried a single 'Tallboy' fuzed for a 0.07 second delay and were dropped from 15,000ft. However, only 617 used the specialized SABS bombsight, 9 used the older Mk XIV type. Conditions for the accurate use of 'Tallboy' ( and even a ship the size of Tirpitz is tiny from that height....) had to be absolutely calm and clear ( 'gin clear' in the RAF slang of the time ) which laid the attacking force open to risk from air interception and accurate flak......
thanks Martin for this simple version. still what gets me JG 5 is nowhere around and no early warning radar fittings to the nearby land masses to give any indication to the KM crewmen of their impending doom. The ship had to be sunk first rate but what a total waste of human life
The distance required to be traveled by this force required the lightening of the A/C by removing all the armour in addition the mid upper turret had to be removed to accomodate long range fusilage tanks originally designed for the Wellington bombers. Another astounding op. by the sniper squadron a shuttle via a landing with the bomb on second grade russian fighter airfields navigating off completely out of date maps. Again i take my hat off to these amazing men
popsie may I ask what your pic in your sig is ? hard to see, I have my thoughts but ........ German ship getting plastered by RAF command ?
Although I admire the technical skill and undoubted dedication of the RAF crews who consistently attacked the Tirpitz , the ultimate fate of the ship always seems sad to me. The horrors of the crew being trapped inside that upturned hull cannot be imagined. Again, two opposing groups of brave men doing their duty - both deserving of respect.
Erich iknow its a bit small i thought it would appear larger. Its a photo of the Bielfield Viaduct after the first operational use of Barnes Wallis's 10 ton Grand Slam bomb. Haven't mastered getting photo's up on the posts yet but here is a couple of film shots from another lancaster on that day.
Just fishing in the realm of what ifs: Could the reason there was no Luftwaffe presence in the air that day be that the command structure { at who knows what level } decided that the Tirpitz was capable of fulfilling the role for which it was towed from Alten Fiord, where it had been previosly damaged by 617/9 Sqdn attacks. This role was as a floating Anti Aircraft platform, dammage from the previous raid having rendered her unseaworthy. Dont know, just taking a stab in the dark i know fully well that The Luftwaffe had tasked the above mentioned Unit as Air cover but something in the command chain failed and i guess this might be the reason?
I recall that some metal part of Tirpitz was the victory trophy which was stolen a couple of times(?). Any idea , Martin, who´s got it at the moment?
Yes indeed - it is a piece of armoured bulkhead with a painting of the ship. The Officers Messes of 617 and 9 used to steal it from one another regularly, but now it resides safely at the RAF Museum in Hendon, London where it can be viewed by all.....
According to what I've read on the internet the bomber force was picked up on German radar a full 45 minutes before the attack, but for some unknown reason the commander of JG 5 never got the warning message. Sounds like a case of the SNAFU's
