Dam Busters

The True Story of the Inventors and Airmen Who Led the Devastating Raid to Smash the German Dams in 1943

By: James Holland

Narrated by: John Lee

The night of 16 May, 1943: Nineteen specially adapted Lancaster bombers take off from RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire, each with a huge 9000-lb cylindrical bomb strapped underneath it. Their mission: to destroy three dams deep within the German heartland, which provide the lifeblood to the industries supplying the Third Reich's war machine.

From the outset it was an almost impossible task, a suicide mission: to fly low and at night in formation over many miles of enemy-occupied territory at the very limit of the Lancasters' capacity, and drop a new weapon that had never been tried operationally before from a precise height of just 60 feet from the water at some of the most heavily defended targets in Germany.

More than that, the entire operation had to be put together in less than 10 weeks. When visionary aviation engineer Barnes Wallis' concept of the bouncing bomb was green lighted, he hadn't even drawn up his plans for the weapon that was to smash the dams. What followed was an incredible race against time, which, despite numerous setbacks and against huge odds, became one of the most successful and game-changing bombing raids of all time.

©2012 James Holland. Recorded by arrangement with Grove/Atlantic, Inc. (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

James Holland Does It Again

James Holland is one of the best living military historians. He proves it with each successive works. "Dam Busters" is the story of the astounding Operation Chastise, one of the most dangerous of all WWII operations. Bomber pilots knew that with each successive mission they might not come back. But in this operation, working with bombs that hadn't been used before, the stakes were unbelievably high. Holland keeps the reader on the edge of his or her seat with this tale of unparalleled heroism and danger. And the men who were lost in the mission were some of the most valiant and brave men to fight in WWII. The were irreplaceable.

John Lee sets the tone and the mood with his narration. It's perfect. What a ride. It's the perfect pairing.

Dambusters

I enjoyed the book , though there were too many short stories within the context.

Dam Busters

Eloquently narrated by John Lee, the factual Dam Busters story in which my father was marginally involved, in that he was the Minister of Munitions, Lord Beaverbrook's RAF Driver, during the offshore trials at Reculver.

Excellent retelling

Excellent summary with new details of the dam buster mission. I learned a lot of new facts. Well worth listening to.

Fantastic and detailed

Met all expectations, put you right in the action with great detail and insight what a brave bunch highly reccomend