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Breaching the Dams by Nicolas Trudgian. (C)- World Naval Ships .com

Breaching the Dams by Nicolas Trudgian. (C)


Breaching the Dams by Nicolas Trudgian. (C)

The Mohne Dam gives way as David Maltbys Lancaster releases its bomb to deliver the coup de grace on the night of 16th / 17th May 1943. Guy Gibson, nearest, and Mick Martin, having already dropped their bombs, make dummy runs with lights on to draw enemy fire.
AMAZING VALUE! - The value of the signatures on this item is in excess of the price of the print itself!
Item Code : DHM2693CBreaching the Dams by Nicolas Trudgian. (C) - This Edition
TYPEEDITION DETAILSSIZESIGNATURESOFFERSYOUR PRICEPURCHASING
ARTIST
PROOF
Portfolio edition of 10 artist proofs.

SOLD OUT. Just one print available of this very rare edition, being sold on behalf of a clinet. The print is at our premises and has been inspected - it is in excellent condition. Print number 7 of 10, certificate supplied. The print is also supplied with two companion prints, Preparing for the Dams and En-Route to the Dams, and a free print : Bomber Force by Nicolas Trudgian.
Paper size 33 inches x 22 inches (84cm x 56cm) Heal, Dudley P
McCarthy, Joe C (companion print)
Walker, Danny R (companion print)
Grayston, Raymond E
Brown, Ken (companion print)
Chalmers, George
Johnson, Edward
McDonald, Grant S (companion print)
Webb, Douglas E
Oancia, Stefan (companion print)
+ Artist : Nicolas Trudgian


Signature(s) value alone : £625
SOLD
OUT
NOT
AVAILABLE
All prices on our website are displayed in British Pounds Sterling



Other editions of this item : Breaching the Dams by Nicolas Trudgian.DHM2693
TYPEEDITION DETAILSSIZESIGNATURESOFFERSYOUR PRICEPURCHASING
PRINT Signed limited edition of 500 prints.

SOLD OUT
Paper size 33 inches x 22 inches (84cm x 56cm) Grayston, Raymond E
Chalmers, George
Johnson, Edward
Webb, Douglas E
+ Artist : Nicolas Trudgian


Signature(s) value alone : £260
SOLD
OUT
VIEW EDITION...
ARTIST
PROOF
Limited edition of 50 artist proofs.

SOLD OUT (September 2009)
Paper size 33 inches x 22 inches (84cm x 56cm) Chalmers, George
Johnson, Edward
Webb, Douglas E
Grayston, Raymond E
+ Artist : Nicolas Trudgian


Signature(s) value alone : £260
SOLD
OUT
VIEW EDITION...
PRINT Limited edition of 75 publisher proofs.

Only 9 copies available of this sold out edition.
Paper size 33 inches x 22 inches (84cm x 56cm) Grayston, Raymond E
Chalmers, George
Johnson, Edward
Webb, Douglas E
+ Artist : Nicolas Trudgian


Signature(s) value alone : £260
£100 Off!Now : £300.00VIEW EDITION...
General descriptions of types of editions :


Extra Details :
About this edition :

The Matted Print :

Companion Print 1 : Preparing for the Dams :



Preparing for the Dams incudes four signatures and is also signed by the artist, and has an image size of 14 inches x 11 inches (59cm x 27cm).

Companion Print 2 : En-Route to the Dams :



En-Route to the Dams incudes one signature and is also signed by the artist, and has an image size of 11 inches x 8 inches (28cm x 20cm).

Free Print : Bomber Force :



Preparing for the dams incudes four signatures and is also signed by the artist, and is number 47 of the edition of 500 prints.

Signatures on this item
*The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare.
NameInfo


The signature of Flight Lieutenant Edward Johnson (deceased)

Flight Lieutenant Edward Johnson (deceased)
*Signature Value : £65

He joined the RAFVR early in the war, serving with 50 and 106 Squadrons. When he joined 617 Squadron in 1943 he was the bomb aimer on Lancaster AJ-N piloted by Les Knight on the Dambusters raid. During that raid they first attacked the Mohne Dam and then went on to attack and actually breach the Eder Dam, for which he was awarded the DFC. Later in 1943 he was shot down but evaded capture and during a two month journey returned to England via Holland, France, Spain and Gibraltar. Sadly, Edward Johnson died 1st October 2002.


The signature of Flight Lieutenant George Chalmers DFC DFM (deceased)

Flight Lieutenant George Chalmers DFC DFM (deceased)
*Signature Value : £65

George Alexander Chalmers was born on February 12 1921 at Peterhead in Scotland. He was educated at Aberdeen Academy before working briefly at a local Crosse & Blackwell factory and joining the RAF as a boy entrant. After boy's service and qualifying as a wireless operator and air-gunner, Chalmer joined the RAF in 1938. Geogre Chalmers was posted to No 10, a two-engine Whitley bomber squadron at Dishforth, Yorkshire, from where he took part in leaflet-dropping operations over Germany after the outbreak of war. In August 1940 Chalmers transferred to No 7, the RAF's first four-engine Stirling bomber squadron which was operating from Leeming. There followed a spell with No 35, a four-engine Halifax bomber squadron, with which Chalmers was fortunate to survive an attack on the battle cruiser Scharnhorst at La Rochelle - his captain managed to make base despite being severely wounded and piloting a badly-damaged aircraft. When he joined 617 Squadron he was a Flight Sergeant and served as wireless operator on Lancaster AJ-O during the Dambusters raid which was piloted by Bill Townsend. Awarded the DFM for his part in the attack on the Ennepe Dam he was commissioned a few months later and awarded the DFC after 65 operations. In 1946 Chalmers was granted an extended service commission, and served in No 617 and No 12 Squadrons until 1950, when he was posted to No 38, a Lancaster squadron in the Middle East. He was released as a flight lieutenant in 1954, and served in the Reserve until 1961. Meanwhile, he had joined the civil service at Harrogate, where he worked for the Ministry of Defence dealing with the RAF's technical requirements. In this period his advice was much valued in the sphere of flight refuelling. On his retirement from the MoD in 1984, the company Flight Refuelling hosted a farewell party for him at which he was hailed as an expert in specialised spares procurement, especially in relation to a refuelling system of outstanding value used by the RAF in the Falklands conflict. Sadly, George Chalmers passed away in August 2002 aged 81.


Flight Lieutenant Joe C McCarthy (deceased)
*Signature Value : £70

In March 1943, a special Royal Air Force (RAF) unit, 617 Squadron, was created to try a new tactic--low altitude bombing using deep penetration bombs that weighed from 9,500 to 22,000 pounds. Their first targets were three dams in the Ruhr industrial area of western Germany: the Mohne, the Eder, and the Sorpe. These dams supplied water for Ruhr steel mills and hydroelectric power. Twenty Avro Lancaster bombers were specially modified for this mission to carry a new, rotating skip bomb that would bounce across the lake, sink, and then explode at the base of the dam. So secret was the dambusting mission, that the pilots and navigators were briefed only the day before as to the actual targets. The three dams were struck, and two were breached, on the night of 16 May 1943. 'Joe' McCarthy, from Long Island, New York, was an original member of 617 Squadron. He joined the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) in 1941 and soon transferred with his crew to RAF Bomber Command. From 1941 until late 1944, he flew the Hampden, Manchester, Lancaster, and Mosquito bombers and compiled a total of 80 combat missions. As Officer Commanding, German Aircraft Flight, he tested and flew over 20 different German aircraft, which had been taken from captured German airfields back to Farnborough for extensive engineering evaluation. During this period, McCarthy flew the first British operational jet, the Meteor, and the experimental Windsor bomber. Upon returning to Edmonton, Canada, he continued flight testing a variety of aircraft for cold weather operations as well as the experimental Canadian flying wing. During 28 years in the RCAF, he flew 64 different British, American, German, and Canadian aircraft. Later assignments included base executive officer for an F-86 NATO installation in France; Commander, Flying Training School, RCAF Station Penhold, Canada; and Commanding Officer of the 407 Maritime Squadron, flying the P2V Neptune. From 1961 to 1962, he was Chief of Air Operations for the United Nations' forces in the Congo, and from 1963 to 1966, worked in plans and policy for CINCLANT/CINCLANTFLT. Wing Commander McCarthy's final assignment was as base operations officer for two maritime squadrons flying the Argus antisubmarine warfare aircraft in Nova Scotia. He retired from the RCAF in 1969 and, after a second career in real estate, fully retired in 1986. Passed away 6th September 1998.


The signature of Flight Sergeant Grant S McDonald RCAF (deceased)

Flight Sergeant Grant S McDonald RCAF (deceased)
*Signature Value : £45

Grant McDonald was the rear gunner on Lancaster AJ-F flown by Ken Brown. On the way to the Ruhr, the gunners shot up and damaged three trains in an eventful trip before reaching the Sorpe Dam. Sadly, we have learned that Grant S McDonald passed away in May 2012.


Sergeant Douglas E Webb (deceased)
*Signature Value : £65

Mr Webb flew 27 missions as a gunner on Lancaster bombers before being selected in March 1943 for the 617 Squadron, which attacked the Mohne, Sorpe, and Eder dams - flooding the German war industry. He passed away in 2002.


Sergeant Dudley P Heal
*Signature Value : £50

Sergeant Dudley Heal Navigator AJ-F, born 1916 Hampshire.
RAF 1940
Uxbridge 29.3.1940
Reserve 30.3.1940
Uxbridge 8.5.1940
4 RC 14.5.1940
Wyton 1.6.1940
Southampton 20.6.1940
53 OTU 10.3.1941
1 RW 10.5.1941
8 ITW 17.5.1941
PTC,Toronto,Canada 19.7.1941
31 PD 18.11.1941
Moncton
31 PD 9.5.1942
3 PDC 18.5.1942
3 (O) AFU 20.6.1942
19 OTU 18.8.1942
434 Squadron 22.12.1942
44 Squadron 4.2.1943 (6 ops)
617 Squadron 25.3.1943
navigator
award DFM (28.5.1943) (Dams)
29 OTU 26.3.1944
214 Squadron 8.2.1945
2 Embarkation Unit,Southampton 11.9.1945
released 11.3.1946
worked at Southampton Docks in the 1970's. Is thought to have passed away in Southampton around February 1999.


The signature of Sergeant Raymond E. Grayston (deceased)

Sergeant Raymond E. Grayston (deceased)
*Signature Value : £65

Ray Grayston had been serving in 50 Squadron when he was posted to 617 Squadron in March 1943. The flight engineer of Les Knights Lancaster AJ-N, they attacked and successfully breached the Eder Dam, Ray was shot down on 16th September 1943, and was taken to Stalag Luft III as a POW. Sadly, we have learned that Ray Grayston passed away on 15th April 2010.


Sergeant Stefan Oancia DFM (deceased)
*Signature Value : £60

Born in Stonehenge, Saskatchewan, Canada in 1923, Sgt. Stefan Oancia enlisted in the RCAF on the 1st ofAugust 1941. Trained at No.2 ITS (graduated 4 December 1941), No.3 AOS (graduated 13 March 1942), No.2 BGS (graduated 25 April 1942) and No.1 ANS (graduated 25 May 1942) and was the bomb aimer on F/Sgt. Kenneth W Brown's Lancaster ( AJ-F Freddie). He survived the raid and the war and was awarded the DFM, presented at Buckingham Palace on 22nd June 1943. Sadly he passed away on the 15th of May 1999.


The signature of Squadron Leader Ken Brown CGM RCAF (deceased)

Squadron Leader Ken Brown CGM RCAF (deceased)
*Signature Value : £85

Born 20th August 1920. Joined the Canadian Air Force in 1941, and joined No.617 Sqn in 1943. Pilot and Captain of Lancaster AJ-F, he attacked the Sorpe Dam. Ken Brown died 23rd December 2002.
Wing Commander Danny R Walker
*Signature Value : £55

The Aircraft :
NameInfo
LancasterThe Avro Lancaster arose from the avro Manchester and the first prototype Lancaster was a converted Manchester with four engines. The Lancaster was first flown in January 1941, and started operations in March 1942. By March 1945 The Royal Air Force had 56 squadrons of Lancasters with the first squadron equipped being No.44 Squadron. During World War Two the Avro Lancaster flew 156,000 sorties and dropped 618,378 tonnes of bombs between 1942 and 1945. Lancaster Bomberss took part in the devastating round-the-clock raids on Hamburg during Air Marshall Harris' "Operation Gomorrah" in July 1943. Just 35 Lancasters completed more than 100 successful operations each, and 3,249 were lost in action. The most successful survivor completed 139 operations, and the Lancaster was scrapped after the war in 1947. A few Lancasters were converted into tankers and the two tanker aircraft were joined by another converted Lancaster and were used in the Berlin Airlift, achieving 757 tanker sorties. A famous Lancaster bombing raid was the 1943 mission, codenamed Operation Chastise, to destroy the dams of the Ruhr Valley. The operation was carried out by 617 Squadron in modified Mk IIIs carrying special drum shaped bouncing bombs designed by Barnes Wallis. Also famous was a series of Lancaster attacks using Tallboy bombs against the German battleship Tirpitz, which first disabled and later sank the ship. The Lancaster bomber was the basis of the new Avro Lincoln bomber, initially known as the Lancaster IV and Lancaster V. (Becoming Lincoln B1 and B2 respectively.) Their Lancastrian airliner was also based on the Lancaster but was not very successful. Other developments were the Avro York and the successful Shackleton which continued in airborne early warning service up to 1992.

Everything we obtain for this site is shown on the site, we do not have any more photos, crew lists or further information on any of the ships.

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