Britain's war was not even one day old (on Sept. 3, 1939) when dark, easy-smiling Guy Gibson flew his first bombing missionto Kiel's ship canal. By late 1943, Wing Commander Gibson was the only one left of his 1939 squadron's 26 men. "Great Guy" Gibson had become a legend in the R.A.F. He was the famed "Dam Buster" (so dubbed by Winston Churchill after the spectacular Möhne and Eder dam-breaching raids); Britain's most decorated airman (the Victoria Cross, the Distinguished Flying Cross and bar, the Distinguished Service Order and bar); "the most experienced bomber pilot in the world."
Last week the Air...