The Dam Busters is a 1951 non-fiction book by Paul Brickhill about Royal Air Force 617 Squadron originally commanded by Wing Commander Guy Gibson V.C. during World War II. The squadron became known as the "Dam Busters" because of Operation Chastise, a mission using highly specialised bombs to destroy Ruhr dams in Germany. The book also covers the subsequent history of 617 Squadron, as an elite squadron specializing in attacking difficult targets with outsize weapons and precision techniques. Among Gibson's successors as commander was Group Captain Leonard Cheshire V.C., and the book describes Cheshire's unorthodox leadership style and innovative target marking techniques. Development After the end of World War II John Nerney, head of the Air Historical Branch of the British Air Ministry identified the need for a history of 617 Squadron. He initially approached its former commanding officer Leonard Cheshire, who declined citing health issues and his work commitments running a hospice. Cheshire recommended that McGowan Cradon be considered for the task. Cradon had served as intelligence officer with the squadron. in December 1946 Cradon was approached and agreed but his services were rejected by the RAF as senior officers questioned his commitment since, during the war, he had been too interested in flying on practice flights rather than attending to his duties. Nerney then discussed the issue with John Pudney, who was an editor at News Review. Pudney had liked Paul Brickhill's book of World War II escape attempts Escape to Danger (which he had co-authored with Conrad Norton) and was at the time attempting to turn it into a series for BBC TV. Following up Pudney's recommendation, Nerney approached Brickhill in February 1949, who jumped at the offer. As an officer and a pilot in the RAF and a proven writer and journalist Brickhill was acceptable provided he could obtain written confirmation from the RAAF of his service with the RAF. Eventually this was received in March 1949. While doing all it could to assist his research the Air Ministry could only provided Brickhill with a small honorarium, and no guarantee of publication other than as a government produced publication. In an attempt to obtain an advance which would pay enough for him to leave his current job as a sub-editor at The Sun newspaper in Sydney, Australia and relocate to England Brickhill approached a number of Australian publishers to see if they were interested in an