Bouncing into the history books

Oldham's former Dambuster, Bill Howarth.

This Thursday marks the 70th anniversary of the daring war-time Dambusters raid which destroyed German dams in its industrial heart, and boosted Britain’s flagging morale.

Two Oldham men took part in historic Operation Chastise, flown by 617 Lancaster Squadron, which used the famous Barnes-Wallis bouncing bomb for the heroic task.

The enemy suffered a crippling blow when the Mohne and Eder dams were breached and a third, Sorpe, was cracked. That night eight planes were lost, 56 men killed and three taken prisoner.

Moorside man Bill Howarth, a gunner, was one of the survivors. He flew in the second wave on an aircraft named AJ-Willie. His plane was badly damaged by flak over the Dutch coast, and it limped back to base with electrical failure, its mission aborted.

Mr Howarth, who was awarded the Distinguished Flying Medal for his war-time service, died at his home in Lower Turf Lane, Scouthead, in 1990 at the age of 68.

Twenty two-year-old Flying Officer Donald Hopkinson, a bomb-aimer of Thornham Lane, Royton, was aboard AJ-Baker and died with the rest of the crew when it crashed on the outbound flight.

Pilots picked for their extraordinary flying skills were given the almost impossible task of flying only 60ft above the water.

Crews had to drop bombs with great precision. The devices had to hit the dam wall and sink. They were pre-set to explode 30ft below the water, the resulting hole pouring water into the Ruhr valley, home of many of Germany’s major industries.

The May date was chosen because melted winter snow would put water levels at their highest and increase the potential destruction.

Though history shows the German war machine was mostly back on track with month, the breathing space helped to change the course of World War II


::617 squadron was initially led by Wing-Commander Guy Gibson, but George Holden had taken over by the time of the raid on the Eder.
George, who died alongside Gibson’s Lancaster crew - on his 30th birthday - was the son of the late Fred Holden of Royton. His family had moved to Richmond, Surrey when he was 16, after his father’s death.