As a bombardier in 101 squadron flying Lancasters, I took part in the Dresden raid Fred Shipton mentions (Letters, September 6).

At the pre-raid briefing we were told of hundreds of refugees from the Russian onslaught pouring into the city. This was received in an uneasy silence but we were told to concentrate on the railway centre only. Nothing was said about avoiding buildings of some German-tied USA company.

In the event, this raid was a ten-hour total flight time in 10/10 cloud, that I consider the most dangerous of all German targets we attacked. Anti-aircraft fire was disastrous and attacks from fighter aircraft shot down planes right, left and centre.

Altogether it was a night to remember, especially when, the following day, unguided V2 rockets began to fall on London where no air-raid shelters could protect you.

As for Mr Shipton stating the allies were quite capable of precision bombing, ie Hamburg, all I can say is that city's anti-aircraft fire was so precise it took my bombsight to pieces while I was aligning it on the Rhine bridge, allowing the Germans to escape our forces overtaking them.

Anyone believing precision bombing is accurate has no idea of the stress of air warfare or the luck needed to survive it.

The book Dresden by historian Frederick Taylor gives a much fuller account than mine of St Valentine's Day.

-EA Mason dfm, Hove