aircraft was also of interest for the Germans. For this reason, the Allies bombed the site on 12–16 September 1943, as well as part of the nearby town Saint-Victor, causing 36 deaths and injuring more than 250 civilians. A notable act of resistance occurred in the city on 6 January 1943 when a mob of citizens overran guards supervising a massive deportation of men to Germany in accordance with the Service de Travail Obligatoire (Obligatory Work Service) plan that sent able Frenchmen to fill vacancies in German factories during the war. All the men who were to be deported managed to escape into the countryside, evading the forced industrial service awaiting them in the Reich. Post-World War II Since 1945, traditional industry (blast furnaces and glassware) has declined. Today Montluçon has chemical industries, tyre manufacture (Dunlop), and electronics (Sagem), and more recently a technopole at La Loue was established for high-tech companies. New Zealand-born SOE agent Nancy Wake, the most decorated woman of World War II, led her small army of resistance fighters in the countryside around Montluçon. Wake died on 7 August 2011 aged 98, and on 11 March 2013, her ashes were scattered in a small wood outside Montluçon. The ceremony was followed by a civic reception in the town. Population Transportation Air There is a small airport from Montluçon (Montluçon - Guéret Airport) with flights mainly for Paris, and a smaller aerodrome in Montluçon itself (Montluçon - Domérat Aerodrome). The nearest international airports are Clermont-Ferrand Airport and Limoges Airport. Road Montluçon is linked to French and European road networks, by three major routes: the highway A71 from Orléans to Clermont-Ferrand. the national route to Clermont-Ferrand (E11) and to Bourges/Vierzon the E62/RN145 joining Limoges to Moulins Rail The Gare de Montluçon-Ville railway station is served by three main passenger rail lines. 'Montluçon - Bourges - Vierzon - Paris' (fastest travel time to Paris: 3h08) 'Montluçon - Gannat - Clermont Ferrand' 'Montluçon - Guéret - Saint-Sulpice-Laurière - Limoges' (on the Lyon-Bordeaux line) City buses Montluçon's local buses are run by Maelis. Sights The upper town, on the right bank of the Cher, consists of steep, narrow, winding streets, and preserves several buildings of the 15th and 16th centuries. The lower town, traversed by the Cher, is the industrial zone. The church of Notre-Dame dates from the fourteenth century, the church of St Pierre partly from the 12th. The town