Kerry, Trevor/Sagot, Gaetan The Lost Dambuster Lancaster

The Story of 617 Squadron's Attack on Hitler’s V2 Rocket Site

In the late afternoon of 24 June 1944, eighteen aircraft from 617 Squadron, which had become famous during the attack on the dams in May 1943 under Wing Commander Guy Gibson, took off from their base in Woodhall Spa. Their target was the huge V2 rocket base at Wizernes in Pas de Calais. This bunker complex, now known as La Coupole, had been built as a reinforced launch site for the V2 rockets with which Hitler intended to terrorise the British population. Once their target was marked, the Lancasters dropped Tallboy bombs. Bomb explosions were recorded around the target. However, the Dambusters did not remain unchallenged. One of the attack aircraft, the Lancaster DV403, piloted by Flight Lieutenant John Edward DFC and bearing the registration KC-G, was hit by anti-aircraft fire. The flight engineer, Flying Officer W. J. King DFC, was killed instantly. One of the Lancaster's engines sputtered and the aircraft began to burn. Edward bravely attempted to stay on course long enough for the rest of the crew to respond to the Abracadabra call and bail out. A resistance fighter saw the crew members falling like candles under their parachutes. Moments later, the DV403 crashed into the growing crops in the nearby French fields. The Lancaster was unusually carrying eight crew members. The pilot and all three gunners were dead. In the chaos of the moment, the courage of one member of the French Resistance, undertaker André Schamp, stood out. He helped a wounded crew member while searching for other survivors. The story of DV403 was recently commemorated in France on its 80th anniversary with an exhibition, lectures and an information panel compiled by the authors, who encouraged the families of the crew members to participate actively in the development of the narrative. This is the story of their fate that night and of the 617 Squadron's attack on the V2 facility as a whole.