Author : Martin W Bowman
Publisher : Pen and Sword Aviation
Page : 290 pages
File Size : 32,94 MB
Release : 2023-04-30
Category : History
ISBN : 1526705559
Book Description
The Allied bombing of Berlin was the longest and most sustained bombing offensive against one target in the Second World War. The Berlin Blitz By Those Who Were There is a compelling, gripping and thought-provoking story of the Allied bombing forces and the ordinary people on the ground, told in their own tongue and with meticulous attention to detail. The result is a coherent, single story which unfolds in a straightforward and incisive narrative. This work draws attention in some detail to the major raids on the Reich capital by RAF Bomber Command from the late summer of 1940 to September 1943. It begins with the reliable but largely ineffective twin-engined Blenheims, Hampdens, Wellingtons and Whitleys, through to the introduction into front-line service of the four-engined âheaviesâ - the Stirling, Manchester and Halifax, which bore the brunt of the bomber offensive until the advent of the incomparable Avro Lancaster in 1942 and the superlative Mosquito. On 30 January 1943, on the tenth anniversary of Hitlerâs usurpation of power, two formations (each of three Mosquitoes) appeared over Berlin in daylight and interrupted large rallies being addressed by Goering and Goebbels. Sir Arthur Harris, Commander-in-Chief, RAF Bomber Command, hoped to âwreck Berlin from end to endâ and âproduce a state of devastation in which German surrender is inevitableâ. But the âBig Cityâ, as it was known to his faithful âold lagsâ, was never completely destroyed.