Part oral history, part archive, this is a thoroughly researched account of the role of the Lancaster bomber in the second world war. It’s solid, no frills film-making, but that’s entirely appropriate given the sobering stories recounted by surviving members of Bomber Command, now in their 90s. The men pay tribute to the plane that proved to be a game-changer in Britain’s war.
But they also recall instances in which nearly 100 Lancasters were lost in a single night. “That’s 672 empty chairs at breakfast,” says one former airman. It’s a poignant image; but so too is the estimate of 25,000 lives lost in the bombing of Dresden, and the stain left on the consciences of the men who dropped the bombs.