The Valour and the Horror

At the time of the Lancaster's introduction, there was a change in policy in Bomber Command. Until then, the major targets had been German industry and military installations. The first hint the aircrews had of a change was a sudden desperation to increase the amount of bombs that each plane could carry. To accommodate the increased weight of the bombs, the head of Command ordered the removal of much of the safety equipment shielding the crews.

Bomber Command Chief Arthur Harris had received new orders: from now on he was free to deliberately target German civilians.

The real policy, to intentionally kill civilians, originated with Air Chief Sir Charles Portal. Portal wrote in his secret memo of February 1942, that it should be quite clear the aiming points should be built up neighbourhoods, not, he emphasized, aircraft factories or dockyards.

The lives of Canadian airmen were drastically effected by decisions made in this British command bunker. But the Canadian government was never consulted, never even advised of the secret decision to start targeting German civilians.

Bomber pilots like Ken Brown and Doug Harvey had no idea during the war that such a decision had been taken.

On the night of July 24, 1943, the aircrews of Bomber Command were sent out in force with orders to destroy an entire city. The target was Hamburg. The mission was named for the biblical city destroyed by the wrath of God, "Operation Gomorrah".

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