Shotley Bridge woman remembers Dambuster grandad 80 years on

Deb Wolstenholme’s grandad Wilfred Ibbotson was an RAF rear gunner selected as part of the 617 Squadron to fly Dinghy Young’s Lancaster plane in Operation Chastise.

The operation saw Wilfred’s squadron called to bomb three dams in Germanys Ruhr Valley on the night of May 16-17, 1943.  The revolutionary bouncing bomb, the brainchild of engineer Barnes Wallis, was dropped at a low level on the Ruhr Valley – Germany’s industrial heartland.

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The mission was a success, but the cost was high with a death toll of 53 airmen of the 133 who left. Three others became prisoners of war.

Wilfred and his crews dropped a bomb that breached the Mohne Damn in Germany, but as they reached the safest point over the Netherlands returning home their plane was shot down. They crash landed into the sea and bodies of the airmen were washed up over the following days. Wilfred was the last man to be found.

Dambuster Wilfred Ibbotson (Image: RAF)

He was 29-years-old and considered one of the ‘older’ airmen. He was married with two kids - his wife Doris Ibbotson (Deb’s grandmother), their daughter Pam Jackson (Deb’s mother) and Pam’s little sister who was only nine months at the time.

Deb said: “My grandma initially received a telegram saying that my grandfather was Missing in Action; the wording was unclear on his dog tag, so officials couldn’t confirm if he was one of the casualties. But my grandma knew that Wilfred’s tag wasn’t clear. She knew deep down that he had been killed, but unfortunately had to wait until August, three months later, to have it confirmed.”

Deb continued: “I have always known about my grandad and the Dambusters. Grandma Doris had a Dutch calendar in the house because the local Dutch families who found the bodies washed up in the Netherlands each adopted an airman until the British families were reunited.”

A memorial erected to those who lost their lives. (Image: RAF)

“My grandma had no idea what grandad was doing”, Deb said. “Even Wilfred didn’t know what he was doing; they knew they were practicing flying at a low level with the bouncing bomb but didn’t know what the operation would entail until the night before. They needed to drop as low as 60 feet above water for Operation Chastise.

“My mother Pam, now 83, doesn’t have huge memories of her father because she was so young, she remembers the aftermath more and the devastating effect it had on her mum. Luckily, my grandma was able to visit where Wilfred was buried in Bergen General Cemetery and was accompanied by her new husband who greatly supported keeping his memory alive.”

A memorial to the fallen aircrew stands on the beach in Castricum aan Zee marking where the planes were shot down. Deb’s cousin Gavin was invited to the unveiling in the Netherlands and met a local historian researching what happened to the plane. The Germans had used parts of the plane as barricades in the war, and they are still finding parts to this day.

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Deb said: “A piece of grandad’s plane is in a museum in the sand dunes. We were able to look at photos of everyone and sign the book looked after by volunteers. The museum asked if we’d like to keep a piece of the plane which was rather special.”

Wilfred's grandchildren including Deb (right) at the memorial. (Image: RAF)

Wilfred was born in Netherton, near Wakefield.

Deb believes it is important to commemorate the anniversary and said: “I think the bravery of the Dambusters should never be forgotten. The events that night have had a profound and lasting impact on the families. I think what the Dambusters sacrificed for us was incredible.”

To mark the 80th anniversary, Pam, Deb, and the family were invited to join the 617 Association to attend a dinner at The Petwood Hotel. Deb said: “There was a Lancaster flypast with the aircrew doing three or four loops – they flew so low but still higher than the Squadron flew that night.

“The following day we visited the memorial. We went to the International Bomber Command Centre for the ‘Standing with Giants’ exhibition. They’ve made sculptures of the seven crew members from my grandad’s plane based on photographs. The hairs on our arms stood up when we saw Wilfred. My cousin said, ‘I don’t want to leave him’. It was a great privilege to witness; we were astounded that they decided to replicate the crew from his plane, to be able to see how he would have looked.”