This book covers the period which is best known for the remorseless night bombing of German cities in the most controversial Allied campaign of the Second World War. Three of this books five chapters look at that night bombing campaign.
Lake reminds us the night bombing campaign was not the whole story. During the spring and summer of 1944 Bomber Command's Lancaster Squadrons were under the command of Dwight Eisenhower and spent most of their time supporting the invasion of France. This period demonstrated that the Lancaster could make a direct contribution to the fighting on the ground.
Lake also looks at the "big bombs", most often used by 617 Squadron. This category covers the original 12,000lb High Capacity Bomb and the two big Barnes Wallis bombs, the 12,000lb Tallboy and massive 22,000lb Grand Slam. While this squadron and these bombs were not at all typical of the activities of Bomber Command, this chapter is a fascinating read.
The book finishes with two appendices, one listing the squadron identity codes used by the Lancaster squadrons and one giving Bomber Command's Order of Battle in April 1945, by which time it contained 59 Lancaster squadrons and only 13 using the Halifax.
The Battle of Berlin
D-Day and Tactical Bombing
Back to Germany
Author: Jon Lake