May 1942. On RAF bases across Britain, aircrews sit nervously in their briefing rooms, every available chair filled. From front-line squadrons to operational training units, all experience levels have been summoned - even student pilots who haven’t yet completed their courses. Rumors say something big is coming - bigger than anything they’ve ever experienced before.
The rooms fall into hushed silence as commanding officers enter with maps of Europe. The aircrews listen in disbelief as an audacious plan is laid out before them. One night. One thousand bombers. Germany’s third-largest city. Just ninety minutes to get in and out.
Some of the men turn a little pale. It sounds like a one-way trip if they’ve ever heard one. Even Prime Minister Churchill is expecting losses of up to a hundred aircraft. If they can pull it off, it’ll be the largest bombing raid in history. If not, it won’t just spell the end for RAF Bomber Command - it’ll be the end of them all…
---
Join Dark Skies as we explore the world of aviation with cinematic short documentaries featuring the biggest and fastest airplanes ever built, top-secret military projects, and classified missions with hidden untold true stories. Including US, German, and Soviet warplanes, along with aircraft developments that took place during World War I, World War 2, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, the Gulf War, and special operations mission in between.
As images and footage of actual events are not always available, Dark Skies sometimes utilizes similar historical images and footage for dramatic effect and soundtracks for emotional impact. We do our best to keep it as visually accurate as possible.
All content on Dark Skies is researched, produced, and presented in historical context for educational purposes. We are history enthusiasts and are not always experts in some areas, so please don't hesitate to reach out to us with corrections, additional information, or new ideas.