No. 5 Group RAF effective squadrons of Bomber Command, personified by No 617 Squadron the "Dambusters", formed from 5 Group aircrew in March 1943. Most of the group's main airfields were around Lincoln, including RAF Scampton. By the end of the war the group had grown to 15 squadrons. The group was noted for its high accuracy bombing, being involved the sinking of the "Tirpitz" in November 1944 and the shattering of the strategic Bielefeld railway viaduct in March 1945. The Group introduced new weapons operationally, including Barnes Wallis's "bouncing" and his Tallboy and Grand Slam "earthquake" bombs. The group was disbanded on 15
No. 5 Group RAF successfully trialed by No.617 Squadron and its commanding officer, Wing Commander Leonard Cheshire, using the de Havilland Mosquito, and later the North American Mustang. Cheshire was subsequently awarded the Victoria Cross and taken off active operations. By mid 1944, using the Stabilizing Automatic Bomb Sight and the 12,000 lb Tallboy bomb, No. 617 achieved a bombing error of only 94 yards at the V Weapon launch site at Abbeville. 5 Group staff also developed other various techniques, such as the '5 Group corkscrew' used to evade enemy fighters, and the 'quick landing system'. The group had some of the most