Stalag Luft III Williams, the book "Stolen Journey" by Philpot and the 1950 film "The Wooden Horse". There had been escape attempts (one of which inspired the film "The Wooden Horse") and many tunnels had been started and discovered before completion. In March 1943, Royal Air Force Squadron Leader Roger Bushell conceived a plan for a mass escape from the North Compound, which took place on the night of 24/25 March 1944. He was being held with the other British and Commonwealth airmen and he was in command of the Escape Committee that managed all escape opportunities from the north compound. Falling back
Dulag Luft Gestapo following The Great Escape from Stalag Luft III in March 1944. Several tunnels were started, but the first two ran into flooding problems. However, they were not discovered. The third tunnel ran west from the western barrack block under a sentry tower on the south-western corner of the camp. This was completed in the spring of 1941, and was used by 17 British officers (mainly RAF) in June 1941. The exact date of the escape is not known, but many sources quote it as occurring during the Whitsun weekend. The escapers, including Day, Buckley, Johnnie Dodge and future Carry