Fred Sutherland was one of the last two surviving airmen who took part in the Dam Buster raid in May 1943.  An air gunner in the RCAF, Sutherland flew with Pilot Officer Les Knight.  They had completed a tour of operations on 50 Squadron when they volunteered to join a new squadron for a ‘special mission’.  The squadron became 617 Squadron.  Sutherland and his crew attacked the Eder Dam and it was their bomb that breached the dam.  In September, the crew flew on the disastrous raid to breach the Dortmund-Ems Canal.  In bad weather, their Lancaster hit some trees and the crew baled out (Knight was killed).  Sutherland avoided capture and with the help of the escape lines he finally crossed the Pyrenees and reached Gibraltar.  He returned to Canada as an instructor.

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