Barnes Wallis

Sir Barnes Neville Wallis CBE FRS RDI FRAeS (26 September 1887 – 30 October 1979) was an English engineer and inventor. He is best known for inventing the bouncing bomb used by the Royal Air Force in Operation Chastise (the "Dambusters" raid) to attack the dams of the Ruhr Valley during World War II.

Barnes Wallis
Wallis as a sub-lieutenant in the
Royal Naval Air Service
Born
Barnes Neville Wallis

(1887-09-26)26 September 1887
Ripley, Derbyshire, England
Died30 October 1979(1979-10-30) (aged 92)
Leatherhead, Surrey, England
Resting placeSt Lawrence's Church, Effingham, Surrey
NationalityEnglish
Occupation(s)Scientist, engineer and inventor
Known forInventing the bouncing bomb, geodetic airframe design and the earthquake bomb
Parents
  • Charles William George Robinson Wallis
  • Edith Eyre Ashby
AwardsAlbert Medal (1968)
Royal Medal (1975)

The raid was the subject of the 1955 film The Dam Busters, in which Wallis was played by Michael Redgrave. Among his other inventions were his version of the geodetic airframe and the earthquake bomb.

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