Last of the Dambusters George 'Johnny' Johnson dies at the age of 101

File photo dated 05/01/17 of George "Johnny" Johnson, then aged 95, at his home in Bristol. Mr Johnson, the last surviving Dambuster, has died at the age of 101. He was part of Royal Air Force 617 Squadron, which conducted a night of raids on German dams in 1943 in an effort to disable Hitler's industrial heartland. Issue date: Thursday December 8, 2022.

“On the tenth run we were down to 30ft and when I said ‘bomb gone’ ‘thank Christ’ came a voice from the rear turret.”

Squadron Leader George Johnson, better known as Johnny Johnson, who has died aged 101, was the last surviving original member of No 617 Squadron RAF who took part in the famous "Dambusters" raid of 1943.

Mr Johnson was just 21 when he took part as a bomb aimer in the audacious raid, codenamed Operation Chastise, to destroy three dams in the Ruhr valley, the industrial heartland of Germany.

His family said Mr Johnson had died peacefully in his sleep at his care home in Westbury on Trym, Bristol, on Wednesday night.

In all 133 aircrew in 19 Lancasters took off from RAF Scampton in three waves – 53 men were killed and three became prisoners of war.

Both the Möhne and Eder dam were eventually breached but Mr Johnson’s target, the Sorpe dam, which had a watertight concrete core 10m wide, remained intact.

As he later explained in an interview with the University of Huddersfield: “Of the first five who were briefed only one got through, and only one of the three reserves got through – there were only two attacks.

"Barnes-Wallis (the inventor of the bouncing bomb used in the raid) told us in his estimation you would need at least six to crack the dam. If you can crack it the water pressure will do the rest.”

On the ground, almost 1,300 people were killed in the flooding. Although the impact on industrial production was limited, the raid’s success was a significant morale boost for the British.

The surviving aircrew were hailed as heros, and Mr Johnson who had already taken part in 50 missions, went on to do another 19, before standing down.

In later life Mr Johnson, who was born in Hameringham in Lincolnshire, became a teacher, including at Rampton Secure Hospital, and later at another hospital for people with mental health problems.

He and his wife later moved to Devon, where he became a Conservative councillor.

The father of three became the last survivor of the original flying members of 617 Squadron after the death of wartime colleague, Fred Sutherland, in January 2019.

Mr Johnson was appointed MBE in the 2017 Birthday Honours, shortly after an unsuccessful petition for him to be knighted, launched by TV presenter Carol Vorderman.

She marched to Westminster to hand-deliver the petition, containing 235,000 signatures, to 10 Downing Street, alongside retired RAF navigator John Nichol, who was shot down and captured during the Gulf War.

Mr Nichol tweeted: “His WW2 generation sacrificed so much, yet asked nothing in return.

"The nation has lost a true hero.”