As Winston Churchill said of Guy Gibson...one of our country's greatest warriors...

How stunningly frank & clear minded of Johnny. And what a wonderful insight into Guy’s real leadership. Bravo!

Cometh the hour Cometh the man.

Also important to remember how young these guys were - when most of us were trying to work out how to swap subjects at uni he was leading men into battle, often to their deaths. If he came across a little stiff and cold it may be because he was shitting himself, doubted himself and had to put on a bit of a show to assert himself. But all this, in order to get the job done. Taking that famous raid into the Ruhr valley that night, against all odds and precedent required absolute balls of steel. Flying in the dark, going back in several times to draw enemy fire and pave the way for the loaded bombers was an unbelievable act of courage and self sacrifice.

In a group such as Bomber Command, with its terrible survival rate, to lead such men requires someone with steel. Guy Gibson may not have been warm or friendly, but he strove to carry out a responsible and often daunting command constantly facing death along with his men. We forget how young they were and how cold you sometimes had to be to complete missions without breaking down. There was no room for sentiment and failure to deal with the stress of missions could end with little sympathy and being branded LMF. I knew a pilot who flew Lacs with 463 squadron, he was only a kid, and late in life he still suffered from severe nervous stress.

"Leading from the front" Is there truly any other way?.. Brave young men I'll never forget

A true English hero sadly missed by many, RIP brave man 🙏❤️🇬🇧🇬🇧❤️🙏Dec twenty two

We must never forget that Gibson was only 24. No life experience. Had he survived the war - like Leonard Cheshire - who knows what achievements awaited a more well rounded character.

I think it is a fair and honest opinion. However Gibson was a Wing Commander ( a very high rank) in his 20s and his personality had not had the chance to catch-up with his terrifying experience. His behavior sounds aloof but most young people have character aspects that they are not proud of in retrospect. He is a heroic figure who died too young to conclude harshly on his true character.

Max Hastings reinforces Johnson's views in his latest book "Operation Chastise" about the Dambuster raid. Interesting to note that W/C Gibson was 23 years old at the time.

I took another view after watching this, in that we often put heroes on pedestals and it was refreshing to listen to a man who was there and although thought gibson was somewhat arrogant valued his leadership highly .. I didn't read any disrespect in JJs comments at all.

My dad was an INSTRUCTOR.. in the AIR FORCE.. and his mannerisms at home.. were like his JOB AT THE OFFICE..!! it was a DOG EAT DOG.. mentality.. which KEPT HIM ALIVE..!! TILL AGED 81..!! I STILL MISS HIM.. NEARLY 14 YEARS since he TOOK FLIGHT TO THE HEAVENS..!!

A couple of Gibson tales .He stuck his nose into the mess where a crowd of Australian pilots were enjoying themselves in a rowdy manner Telling them to quieten down . The Aussies grab Gibson pulled his trousers off carried him outside and put him on the roof of a car . Gibson drove onto an operational base in his car . The sentry failed to challenge him . Gibson screeched to a halt and came storming back to the sentry reprimanding telling him it was standing orders to fire on any vehicle which failed to stop . The sentry said " Im very sorry sir perhaps you would like to reverse up and try again ".

Douglas Bader and Guy Gibson must have had much in common. Both men were outstanding pilots and leaders especially Bader with his tin legs!

I believe the late great Dave Shannon called Gibson the"Arch Bastard" but with a wry smile when he said it.

Thank you for sharing ❤ 😊 😀🙏

Put it this way, if given the choice I'd certainly volunteer to be in Guy's crew and plane. Johnny would be there too!

I believe that Hugh "Cocky" Dundas, one of Douglas Bader's men, also became a Wing Commander at the age of 23. Highly remarkable.

I believe that when someone leads there must be a certain amount of arrogance and belief in your ability to be able do the job in question . It doesn't make you a bad person just a focused one .

A BRAVE MAN

still a hero imho

Don't forget that Guy Gibson was just TWENTY FOUR when he led Operation Chastise! TWENTY FOUR!

In Warriors, by Max Hastings, he describes how Gibson went to the hospital to sit by the side of a badly burned flight mechanic, so that he might not die alone. This moved me greatly.

Was well known for being rude to 'erks' but as they say he would not ask anyone to do anything that he would not do himself. Some of his crew hated him for the risks he took to get the job done such as drawing enemy fire whilst other planes attacked the dams

"You're doing this, I'm doing this, we're doing this together." It wasn't just him though was it. There were another five guys in his Lanc and they hadn't been consulted about uneccesarily having another run through as a target for AA. I learned from their memoirs that this rankled, as did the handing out of gongs for bravery.

I knew a Flight Sergeant air gunner who said pretty much the same thing about Gibson.

The thing is at the end of the day Guy Gibson was not there to make friends just to get a very difficult job done not to be the best of friends with everyone especially in war time as any one of them could be dead in no time.

Thank you for your clear and well rounded description of Wing Commander Guy Gibson VC, Flight Sergeant Johnny Johnson. It is quite am accurate account of him. Winston Churchill hailed him the "Dam Buster" and one of the most splendid of fighting men! Listen to the radio interview with him to gain more clarity into this extraordinarily accomplished young man. He was expressed his thoughts articulately, refined speech, clear thinking and fluently spoken and sharp witted young man with a charming sense of humour. His cool calm collectedness might have been mistaken for being cold hearted .Let us remember that demeanor between social classes in Britain, especially in those stratified times had a wide variance. He did not once come across as arrogant but more demure in fact, aside from putting down the "huns" which at the time no English. Scottish, Welsh or Irish man or American or other allied fighters would have objected to. Show me one man who at the age of 24 rose to the RAF rank of Wing Commander and was vouched amongst the most elite Pilots of the RAF which was not just an AirForce of Britain but Great Britain and her Dominions the Great British Empire.He was born and grew up in n British India till aged six when his parents split up. He found passion in Aviation to dive into as his solitary world, something I can relate to my self having obsessed with this occupation since a child and still at 60 flying!I was schooled at an English Public School and served the RAF as a Volunteer in the late 1970s and early 80s and had a glimpse of how tough it can be there to rise to anything. Let us celebrate this splendid chap's achievements and show respect to all those who fought and died in the WW2. He cheated death partly by skill and bravery and partly by fate. as he modestly put it. In his interview he admitted there were 'boys" as he fondly referred to his colleagues that arrived in the RAF 3 years before him and some of whom he moulded himself around their attributes and styles a his heroes only to see them die and he surving.He did not fuss too much on what he had gone through and was not bragging on his accolades and remained modest and engaging throughout the interview. Well done old boy! Hip Hip...Hooray! Guy Gibson...as Churchill described him..."one of our bravest warriors" and I would add..he came across as quite a jolly fellow in that interview! Only the good die young! What a loss it might have been for Britain if the RAF had not reconsidered his application after he was initially rejected in 1936 because of his height! kzfaq.info/get/bejne/erdonq2XyrzIZIU.htmlsi=uwh5phuP-6BjHgXq

Gibsons leadership qualities are unquestioned but his arrogant attitude to all lower ranks from the very beginning of his career was noted regularly on his RAF file. However I was told the services attitude was "Natural leaders are very few and when they get one they will forgive them anything for that."

Thank you, Sir.

I remember Sir Frank Williams saying Nigel Mansell was the best driver he ever had - and the most arrogant person who had ever worked for him, but that these were opposite sides of the same coin. I suspect the RAF heroes like Gibson and Bader were much the same.

My great great grandfather is guy gibson ❤️❤️

Well said from someone that actually served with him rather than a slagging off from some keyboard hero.

I respect this man as such, even in those days, he belonged to the so-called enemy! May he rest in peace.

As an after thought and having served in the Royal air force , I always recognised that difficult decisions are the privilege of rank, Wing commander Guy Penrose Gibson had the rank and was entitled not to be wishy washy but a disciplinarian , I myself did not object to this when I was serving by my superiors but some were aggrieved by it, and could not accept discipline... We are all different..

Bloody heros!!!!!

respect for Mr veteran ww ll U S. I Like him .🤓🙏🏻🥀🌹❤️

I imagine it's not easy to exercise the authority necessary to do your job well and be friendly with those you have to command in war. But is was likely a class thing, my school was a few hundred yards from the school Guy Gibson attended and the kids there didn't speak to us.

similar character to to Douglas Bader

The thing is, sometime people just had to be that way otherwise they would never have achieved what they did. There really wasn't time for people to hold others hands, I shudder to think what todays 20yr olds would manage in that situation

Gibson was a product of the age - a snob who (initially at least) couldn't really communicate with lower ranks. But it was the lower ranks, pilot sergeants etc who won the air war, more than Guy and his Oxbridge contemporaries. Guy's attitude changed, and as Johnny says, he became a great leader.

I've had tea and bikkies with him.

What a hell of a nice man ! There are not many who would speak so well of him . He was not the nicest person to deal with . He could not land a Lanc properly. Without bouncing it, not the thing to do with such a large plane . But he was very very brave !

Mahigpit po si Mr. Gibson sa mga subordinates nya? Meticulous lang po siguro,,gusto nya po ng precise planning o gusto po nyang seryoso ang lahat sa trabaho

Amazing how many missions he did compared to the americans 25 then homeside!

To Ady longmate... What you do not realise maybe you are ..TO .. young but what people like you do not appear to realise is these fellows fought for democracy ,That allows me and you to voice my opinion.. so do not be so rude !!, telling people to keep quite .. I am old enough to be your grand father but from what I digest of your comment you are ignorant of the time and men in question.. So do not be so rude and go somewhere to learn manners if you did not learn them from home and up-bringing...which seems so..

Shaggy. Mr bubble

Were there two Johnny Johnsons, ? The only one I know of was the Squadron Leader of a Fighter wing. What did this other chap do ?

Hero WW2!

Dont mention his dog!

Should we perhaps rename Gibsons dog Whitie. Will that suit everyone?

What a lot of those who comment on this interview don't seem to understand is the insufferable level of snobbery and 'classism' that existed in the pre-war RAF. Gibson was clearly a snob who could barely tolerate people he believed to be his social inferiors. When the necessities of war opened the RAF up to air crews from the 'lower classes' and the colonies (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa) guys like Gibson didn't like it one bit but eventually and reluctantly had to accept it. That doesn't mean to say that he wasn't brave or tactically sound, but in truth, he probably wasn't a particularly pleasant fellow.

GUY GIBSON IS SAID TO BE VERY LEVEL HEADED,NOT ARROGANT OR STUCK UP IN ANYWAY WHAT SO EVER! SHAME ON THOSE WHOM SLAGG HIM OFF,ARE THEY JELEOUS-PROBLEY ARE!=WERE WITH YOU GUY TO DEFEND YOUR CORNER WHEN YOURE NOT HERE TO GET THE CHANCE TO BE ABLE TO DEFEND YOUR SELF!

The likes of men of their calliber will never pass this way again

To Johnny Johnson, I never knew Wing Commander Guy Gibson..I cannot argue with you but things of a personal nature should be kept out of the history of a war hero..We have a habit of putting people like this down based on personality , surely what counts is he DID the job..I think it very wrong and disturbing to talk like this when the man cannot defend himself ..I admire all aircrew that flew these missions, My dad said in the first great war GCs ,MCs decorations were picked out of a hat so if they got back home the officers could use it after there name on there writing paper..Not so with Wing Commander Guy Gibson or indeed Leonard Cheshire VC..ex RAF 5131 Bomb disposal sqn...

What do these old heros think about all the mosks and terrorism in the U.K. now...

They were all brave fellows, sargeant pilots and all, but the vast majority of the permanent RAF officers at the beginning of the war were a bunch of snobs. Some wouldn't fly with an N C O as their wingman or similarly wouldn't fly as second in command to a sargeant pilot in command. After an heroic aerial battle, the pilots would retire to their seperate messes. There was virtually no fraternization in the pubs. Thete is no doubt most of those young officers in the permanent RAF erroneously thought themseives superior to non commissioned expert pilots. They were fighting to retain an English priviliged lifestyle. It was beautifully ironic that the top scoring number of kills pilot was a sargeant pilot - Johnmy Johnson.

Z

gutted,at these aweful comments! EVERY ONE HAS ALWAYS SPOKEN FAR MORE THAN VERY HIGHLY OF GUY GIBSON,IM SURE THEY WOULD DIS AGREE WIYH THE COMMENTS! GUY GIBSON GAVE HIS LIFE FOR US,HOW EASY IS IT TO SLAGG SOMEONE OFF WHEN THEY HAVE DIED,AND ARE NOT HERE TO DEFEND THEMSELVES!!! SORRY BUT GUY GIBSONS QUITE SIMPLY THE BEST!

War criminal.