AA32629 Avro Lancaster B.III ‘Honor’ - RAF No.617 Sqn - Operation Catechism

Avro Lancaster BIII, ED763 'KC-Z' "Honor", RAF No.617 Sqn, 'Operation Catechism', Sinking the Tirpitz, November 12th 1944.

Operation Catechism on 12th November 1944 would see another concerted effort by the Royal Air Force to destroy the mighty warship Tirpitz, with 18 Lancasters from No.617 Squadron and a further 13 from No.IX Squadron taking off from their temporary bases at Lossiemouth and Milltown in northern Scotland heading for Tromso Fjord. 

All the aircraft carried more than a maximum fuel load for a Lancaster and were again loaded with Tallboy bombs, but this time, their flightpath would skirt Swedish airspace, attacking Tirpitz from the opposite direction, hoping to catch the German defenders by surprise. As the Lancasters began their attack run, they could clearly see Tirpitz from as far as 20 miles away and significantly, could see no Luftwaffe fighters. Despite attracting the attentions of heavy defensive fire, the bombers pressed home their attack, with the first Tallboy being released at approximately 08.40. 

Over the course of the next few minutes, Tirpitz was subjected to an almost constant stream of these devastating bombs, with at least two scoring direct hits, and others detonating close enough to the ship to cause further damage. Just minutes after the first bomb had been released, Tirpitz was seen to start listing to port, initially appearing to settle at an angle of around 35 degrees as water flooded in, but following a massive explosion ten minutes later, continued her death roll. 

Her fate was sealed – Tirpitz immediately capsized and the Lancasters turned for home.