ESCAPE FROM NUREMBERG

A pair of badly shot-up Lancasters from 97 Squadron battle their way back to base across the North Sea, their weary crews thankful to have survived a raid on Nuremberg which turned out to be Bomber Command’s heaviest loss in a single night, 30 / 31 March 1944.

Nuremberg, the city whose name was symbolic for the rise of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi cronies, claimed the attention of Allied bombers many times. Despite the heroics of the crews involved, one raid, however, was to prove disastrous for Bomber Command.

On the night of Thursday 30 March 1944 a large force of nearly 800 Lancasters, Halifaxes and a few Mosquitos took off from bases in England and headed deep into enemy territory. Unfortunately the skies, forecast to hold protective high cloud, were clear and the moon was full, perfect hunting territory for prowling enemy night fighters, searchlights and flak. The raid could have been cancelled but it wasn’t and the Germans took full advantage of the conditions; 82 bombers were shot down before reaching Nuremberg and more were to follow. Conditions over the target were not as forecast either as the bomber stream ran into heavy cloud and fierce cross-winds. Bombing accuracy fell far short of expectations. By the time the last stragglers returned to base 96 bombers had been shot down and nearly a dozen damaged beyond repair. In a single night Bomber Command had lost more men than had Fighter Command in the entire Battle of Britain.

Anthony Saunders’ dramatic painting Escape from Nuremberg glows with authenticity as a pair of badly damaged 97 Squadron Lancasters struggle back to base after the raid. As the first rays of the rising sun glint across the surface of the North Sea below it won’t be long before the weary crews are safely on the ground.