World War 2 Controversy: Were 90 French freedom fighters killed by their RAF Allies to ensure the success of D-Day? - New book uncovers one of the last secrets of WW2 - Mission Included No. 487 (New Zealand) Squadron

It has taken many years of painstaking detective work on both sides of the Channel to unravel what really happened that day; and to reveal the real reason for the raid. The truth is, in many ways, more dramatic than the legend. But it is a story that could never have been told at the time as thousands of lives, and indeed the very future of Europe itself, were at stake.

18th February 1944 - Eighteen Mosquito bombers of the RAF including No. 487 (New Zealand) Squadron take off from a snowbound RAF Hunsdon, their crews knew what they had to do. 120 French resistance fighters were to be shot in Amiens prison the very next day and the RAF had been asked to go in and breach the walls in a last-ditch attempt to save the prisoners from certain death.

With pin-point precision, the bombers blew four holes in the walls and blasted the buildings, enabling over 200 inmates to escape. Despite the loss of the leader, Group Captain Pickard, and his navigator, the Mosquito crews could rightly celebrate a job well done.
But in Amiens, there was only bewilderment. Over 90 prisoners had been killed and nobody knew why. What possible motive did the RAF have for attacking a modest provincial prison on the outskirts of the town?

Curiously, within a few days a message of thanks appeared from the ‘French Resistance’ and was duly forwarded to the Mosquito crews. But this message came not from the snow covered meadows of Picardy, but from the shadowy depths of Whitehall in London. It was a fake.
A few months later, the official story, full of half truths and lies, was released to the British Press and the legend was born. This official press release has formed the basis for every book and article on the subject for the past 60 years.

New book released by Red Kite
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