Iconic 'lucky' bomber G for George returns to the Australian War Memorial

Australia Broadcast Center

3 days ago

The fuselage of an iconic World War Two Lancaster bomber nicknamed "Lucky" has been returned to the Australian War Memorial (AWM).
G for George is one of the memorial's most beloved and well-known exhibits and has been in storage for the past five years while the memorial underwent significant redevelopment.
Hundreds of people lined Anzac Parade in Canberra to see the aircraft's fuselage return to the memorial under police escort. The aircraft will now be reassembled to return to public display.
Murray Vogt's father Brian flew with the 460 Squadron, of which G for George was a part, in the war.
Mr Vogt was among those watching on.
"Dad was pretty stoic and didn't really talk about bad experiences, he spoke of mateship and sacrifice.
"It's a great thing for people to see and understand some of the sacrifice people have made."
AWM director Matt Anderson described the aircraft as a "significant" part of the institution's collection.
"Of all the moments this morning, the most powerful moment for me was when school children spontaneously applauded as she came around the roundabout," he said.
"It just reminded me of the first time I saw George — I was 10 years old — and they will have that memory now forever.
"It's a very powerful moment, it's a historic moment."
The aircraft carried out 89 bombing missions over Germany and occupied Europe between 1942 and 1944.
There were zero casualties among the 250 aircrew who flew on George throughout the war, leading many to believe the aircraft was "lucky", according to AWM senior historian Lachlan Grant.
"There were no casualties amongst the aircrew flying on George itself but over 80 of the aircrew who flew G for George were later killed in operations flying in other Lancasters and other squadrons," he said.
Dr Grant said George had "a lot of very near misses", returning to base damaged on several occasions.
Over the next month, the remaining parts of G for George will be transported to the war memorial where it will be fully reassembled.
It will form the centrepiece of a new exhibition, opening to the public next year, after renovations at the memorial are complete.
Emily Hyles, a curator at the memorial, said the exhibition would provide powerful new insights for visitors.
"We have got a lot of new objects that have never been on display before and in doing that we can tell our visitors a whole range of new stories," she said.
Her fellow curator Garth O'Connell said George was an "icon".
"It has been a professionally and personally very rewarding experience to help put George back on display and to help bring other stories to life."