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00:01in late 1943 the French resistance asked the British for help scores of its top agents were
00:09being held at a prison in Amiens some were about to be executed others tortured so that they might
00:17divulge crucial information about the impending Allied invasion they had to be got out the British
00:26decided to blow open the prison from the air but this had to be a precision attack unlike any before
00:33it it was only possible because of a special aircraft the de Havilland Mosquito the raid
00:40became a legend for the men who flew it versatile mosquito has given us scores of different jobs to
00:46do but that army on prison attack is the one above all that I look back on with satisfaction as
00:53long
01:17with I live the attack on Amiens prison was one of the most spectacular raids of World War two it
01:23was a
01:23very specialized form of assault that was only made possible because of the Mosquito before the
01:32war Sir Geoffrey de Havilland to develop the concept of a high-speed bomber convinced that it could outrun
01:38enemy fighters he had already built high-speed aircraft including the record-breaking Comet Racer
01:52this was made of wood as was the Albatross transatlantic mail plane
02:01the Havilland decided to use the same material for his bomber
02:07by late 1940 the prototype Mosquito was ready
02:15it flew at nearly 400 miles per hour faster than the British Spitfire and German Bf 109 the deadliest fighters
02:23of their day
02:28the air ministry was impressed and placed an immediate order
02:36the new aircraft carried a crew of two and their instructors emphasize the importance of close teamwork
03:00the first mosquitoes into service were for reconnaissance their high speed meant that they could outrun enemy fighters and swoop
03:08in to photograph vital installations
03:14the bomber version of the Mosquito went into service with the RAF in November 1941
03:21wing commander Huey Edwards took command of the first squadron he had already won the Victoria Cross during bombing raids
03:36edwards taught his crews to attack precision targets calling for a high degree of flying and navigational skills
03:44he was convinced that the Mosquito could take on targets that had so far been considered impossible
03:54it was about to become a formidable radar
04:02demonstrating high speed pinpoint accuracy
04:09the Mosquito's first raid of this sort was in support of resistance fighters in Nazi occupied Norway
04:19the Norwegian traitor Vidcon Quisling was actively supporting the Nazis
04:29in September 1942 four mosquitoes roared across the North Sea their target the Gestapo HQ in Oslo where Quisling was
04:39making a speech to his masters
04:49awards
04:55Double bombs were dropped five failed to explode
04:59and three passed through the building
05:05Quisling escaped unharmed.
05:07The raid was not a great success,
05:09but it had shown the potential of precision bombing.
05:20A second low-level raid followed on a factory in Eindhoven, Holland.
05:28Skimming rooftops,
05:29the Mosquito crews perfected their art
05:32with a dazzling display of navigation and pinpoint bombing.
05:44Films shot from the Mosquitos revealed the full force of their assault.
06:00Then came a cheeky raid, aimed at the heart of the Nazi regime.
06:08On the 30th of January, 1943,
06:11one of Hitler's top henchmen, Josef Goebbels,
06:14was making a key propaganda speech in Berlin.
06:20It was a major anniversary for the Nazi party,
06:23marking its 10th year in power.
06:29Four Mosquitos took off and headed for Berlin,
06:32aiming to arrive at the precise time of the broadcast.
06:45air raid sirens sounded and bombs were dropped near the radio station,
06:50forcing Goebbels to postpone his speech.
06:55It was a major embarrassment for the Nazis.
07:00With its reputation as a raider established,
07:04RAF pilots of the Mosquito now faced their most difficult challenge.
07:10A precision bombing raid on a prison.
07:13Their task, to rescue French resistance agents vital to the Allies' war aids.
07:21The French resistance was a constant thorn in the side of the German occupiers.
07:29Specialising in sabotage and intelligence gathering,
07:32it fought damaging campaigns behind enemy lines.
07:39In Britain, Prime Minister Winston Churchill set up the Special Operations Executive
07:44to help resistance fighters.
07:48In his words, its task was to set Europe ablaze.
07:59The British were dispatching a steady stream of supplies to resistance groups in Europe.
08:21The British were dispatching a steady stream of supplies to resistance groups in Europe.
08:24But by late 1943, the Gestapo had arrested many key resistance fighters in northern France.
08:35René Chapelle was one of the top resistance commanders in northwest France.
08:40His day job was as a bicycle repairman, a bad one,
08:43ensuring that the bicycles he mended for his German masters quickly fell apart.
08:53Secretly, he commanded the communist resistance groups in the region.
09:00More than 70 of Chapelle's best agents had been arrested,
09:03and he was deeply worried that at any moment one might break under torture
09:07and give away vital information about where the landings might take place.
09:15The resistance targeted the prison,
09:17and plans were drawn up and handed to his wife Maria,
09:21who smuggled them to contacts in Paris and London.
09:28But it was not just the future of the resistance that concerned Chapelle.
09:32He had a personal reason for getting the prisoners out of Amiens.
09:37Inside was a teenager called Jean Beaurin.
09:41His father had been deported by the Germans,
09:43and Chapelle had pledged to protect the young man and his family.
09:53The young man was determined to play his part in the resistance,
09:56so he trained him in sabotage, targeting German supply trains.
10:02Their greatest success came when they discovered that an SS train
10:06would be travelling on the same line as a German troop train bound for Russia.
10:16At the last moment, they switched the points,
10:18and the two trains collided,
10:20killing over a hundred SS men
10:22and destroying an entire train load of tanks.
10:31When Jean Beaurin was arrested,
10:33it was not because of this massive assault on the Third Reich.
10:40He had been found in possession of illegal ration cards.
10:45Beaurin was sent to Amiens prison,
10:47where he joined his brother Roger,
10:49who had been gathering military information.
10:56For René Chapelle,
10:58the mission to break out his resistance fighters from Amiens
11:00was now intensely personal.
11:03And for the men called on to carry out the raid,
11:06the plan was a tall order
11:07and could easily end in disaster.
11:11But it had to be tried.
11:24René Chapelle's urgent plea for British help
11:26had first been received by his controller at SOE.
11:32In London,
11:32the possibility of a ground attack on the prison was discussed,
11:35but rejected because it was too heavily guarded.
11:40It was decided to look at the possibility
11:42of using aircraft to open it up.
11:45The RAF's No. 2 Tactical Bomber Group was alerted.
11:53Resistance agents were asked to supply up-to-date intelligence
11:56on the layout of the jail
11:57and the daily routine inside it.
12:02This enabled Air Vice Marshal Sir Basil Embry,
12:05No. 2 Group's commander,
12:07to plan an attack.
12:10The Mosquito crews were to breach the perimeter wall
12:13and open up the cell block,
12:14giving the prisoners inside the main building
12:16the opportunity to break out.
12:18Other attacks would disrupt the German guards.
12:25The mission was planned for January 1944,
12:28but poor weather delayed it.
12:32Then, in early February,
12:34bad news came through.
12:3720 of the resistance agents inside Amiens prison
12:41were to be executed over the next two weeks.
12:48The RAF had to act now,
12:50or not at all.
12:53During the first week in February,
12:55detailed planning for the raid was completed.
12:57It was given the codename Operation Jericho.
13:01The walls would come tumbling down.
13:06Amiens was one hour's flying time
13:08from the Mosquito base at RAF Hunsdon.
13:16The Mosquitoes would have to fly at ultra-low level.
13:19Poor winter weather, snow and fog,
13:22made the mission even more dangerous.
13:29Three Mosquito squadrons were tasked with the mission.
13:33Two to carry out the attack,
13:34and the other to act as a reserve.
13:42Four points of attack were selected.
13:47The first wave would breach the perimeter wall in two places,
13:50since the Germans would be able to seal one breach quickly.
13:59The second wave was to attack the main prison building,
14:03hitting it with sufficient force
14:04to blow open cell doors in the jail
14:06and let the prisoners out.
14:12The final two points of attack
14:14were the German canteen and barracks.
14:20The assault was timed to begin just after 12 noon,
14:23just as the guards were sitting down for lunch.
14:31The aircraft and crew selected for Operation Jericho
14:35came from 140 Mosquito wing in RAF No. 2 group.
14:40They would be led by Group Captain Charles Pickard,
14:44a highly decorated bomber pilot,
14:46seen here in an early war propaganda film,
14:48starring as a Wellington bomber pilot.
14:56His navigator was Flight Lieutenant Bill Broadley.
14:59Their Mosquito was codenamed F for Freddy.
15:05The SOE advised the French resistance of the plan
15:08to use an air attack to liberate the prisoners
15:10and gave it the codeword
15:12that would be broadcast before the attack.
15:18The problem remained of how to get the information
15:21to the men in the prison.
15:22This was solved by Jean Beaurin's mother.
15:27During a visit to see her son,
15:29she threw a tantrum,
15:30cursing Germany and Hitler
15:32for taking away her husband and boys.
15:34Promptly arrested,
15:35she was locked up in the prison
15:37and so could warn her sons
15:39and their fellow prisoners
15:40and their fellow prisoners
15:40of the impending aerial assault.
15:47On the 18th of February 1944,
15:50Operation Jericho was given the go-ahead.
16:00The Mosquitoes took off in three waves,
16:03each with six aircraft.
16:20Typhoon fighters were to escort them.
16:22But a mix-up in the orders
16:23meant they were late taking off.
16:28But they did manage to catch up
16:30with the Mosquitoes
16:31as they approached the English Channel.
16:35Flying at almost wave-top level,
16:38the raiders swept across the sea.
16:45High winds and snow showers
16:47made flying at that height
16:48extremely hazardous.
17:00But it was worth it.
17:02As they crossed the French coast
17:03and headed inland at treetop level,
17:06the German radar failed to pick them up.
17:14The Mosquitoes and their escorts
17:16then altered course
17:17to approach Amiens from the north.
17:22At precisely 12.01,
17:24the first wave of Mosquitoes
17:26swept in towards the jail,
17:28flying at just over 300 feet.
17:37their 500-pound bombs
17:39struck the outer walls
17:40precisely as planned.
17:44The second wave followed
17:46and dropped their bombs
17:47on the main prison building,
17:49blowing the jail block open.
17:54The German canteen
17:55and accommodation blocks
17:56were also struck.
18:02A 20-foot gap
18:03had been created
18:04in the outer wall
18:05and prisoners scrambled
18:06to escape.
18:14Group Captain Pickard
18:16made one more low-level pass
18:17over the burning prison.
18:19To him,
18:20it looked as though
18:21the job was completed.
18:30He ordered the reserve wave
18:31of Mosquitoes
18:32to head home.
18:35But at just that moment,
18:37a pack of German
18:38Focke-Wulf FW 190s
18:40flew into the action.
18:46One of the fighters
18:47spotted Pickard's Mosquito
18:48and that of his wingman.
18:50He signalled an attack.
18:57The German closed in
18:58and pumped bullets
19:00into the wooden frame
19:00of the lead Mosquito.
19:08F for Freddy,
19:09with Pickard
19:10and Broadly on board,
19:11crashed
19:12and both of them
19:13were killed instantly.
19:15It was a tragic end
19:16to a brilliant mission.
19:22The rest of the Mosquitoes
19:23and their Typhoon escorts
19:25headed for home.
19:26But as they flew
19:27towards the coast,
19:28they were hit
19:28by German flak guns.
19:35In the hail of fire,
19:37one Mosquito pilot,
19:38Squadron Leader McRitchie,
19:40was badly wounded.
19:41He managed to crash land,
19:43but his navigator
19:44did not survive.
19:49The rest of the raiding force
19:50made it back to base safely.
19:53It had been a triumph
19:55of low-level flying,
19:56as navigator Cecil Dunlop
19:58later recalled.
20:00I saw his bombs
20:02hit the wall
20:03and, you know,
20:04a great sort of shower
20:05of red brick dust.
20:06And then I looked up
20:08and the top part
20:10of the building
20:11was way above us.
20:12His pilot,
20:14New Zealander Maxi Sparks,
20:16was asked to estimate
20:17their height.
20:18Well, the wall's, what,
20:1920 feet?
20:21Uh, oh, 15 feet,
20:24I suppose.
20:25Something like that.
20:27Operation Jericho
20:28had been an outstanding success.
20:32Of the 700 prisoners
20:34held in Amiens Jail,
20:36258 escaped,
20:37including many
20:38of the resistance agents
20:40scheduled to be executed
20:41the next day.
20:43But it had been
20:44a devastating assault
20:45and, inevitably,
20:47prisoners were killed.
20:48102 died.
20:57It was a high price to pay,
20:59but crucial information
21:00about the forthcoming
21:01Allied landings
21:02had been denied
21:03to the Nazis.
21:08Jean Borin
21:09was one of the resistance men
21:10who got out alive.
21:15but his mother
21:16was badly wounded
21:17and his brother died.
21:24At least 50 German guards
21:26were killed.
21:30The operation leaders,
21:32Picard and Broadley,
21:33were buried close
21:34to the crash site
21:35of their Mosquito.
21:40of Amiens Jail.
21:40The citizens of Amiens
21:41placed fresh flowers
21:43on their grave every day
21:45and continued to do so
21:46when the two prison busters
21:48were moved
21:48to their final resting place
21:49in a cemetery
21:51in the shadow
21:51of the walls
21:52of the town's jail.
22:02Mosquitoes went on to conduct
22:04other daring raids
22:05in the war.
22:08In March 1945,
22:1018 flew in
22:11at rooftop level
22:12over the center of Copenhagen.
22:14In an echo
22:15of Operation Jericho,
22:17pinpoint bombing
22:18struck the Gestapo headquarters.
22:19In the chaos,
22:21several Danish resistance leaders
22:23were able to escape.
22:27But for most of the pilots,
22:29the Amiens raid
22:30remained the greatest raid of all.
22:33Helping those prisoners
22:35to escape
22:35a cold-blooded death
22:37after all they'd done for us
22:39was the kind of job
22:41that makes you feel
22:42you're doing something
22:44really definite
22:44in the war.
22:45It was an honor
22:47to be there.
22:51Perhaps their finest legacy
22:53was the Normandy landings
22:55that came five months later.
22:59Thanks to their success
23:00in denying vital intelligence
23:02to the Germans,
23:03D-Day achieved
23:04total surprise.
23:08And less than six months
23:09after the raid,
23:10on the 31st of August 1944,
23:12the citizens of Amiens
23:14celebrated
23:15as British troops
23:17liberated their town.
23:20unless the war bater,
23:22and after the mob
23:22die in opposition
23:23I don't have to miss
23:24or if they were
23:25for a sequel
23:25or if they were
23:41the north iets
23:42or nor
23:42or a big thing
23:42but maybe
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