CONFERENCE PROGRAMME

Air Power / Historical Conference

THE DAMS RAID 75 YEARS ON Sponsor REVIEWING

LONDON / 17 MAY 2018

08:30 Registration & Refreshments

08:55 INTRODUCTION: THE SCOPE OF THE CONFERENCE THE ISSUES OF OPERATION CHASTISE There are many factors to consider when analysing the Dams Raid and some of the issues and assessments remain contentious to this day. This presentation will highlight the major differences between the general view of the mission (based on the 1955 film) and reality. It will question the assignment of priority and aircraft numbers to the dams. The widely varying assessments of the scale and importance of the results achieved will be outlined. A timeline of the mission will also be offered listing the fortunes (and misfortunes) of the three waves of aircraft, the losses and the attacks on the dams. Conference Chairman: Paul Stoddart FRAeS

09:45 THE HISTORIOGRAPHY OF THE DAMS RAID AND 617 SQUADRON Speaker: Dr Peter Gray FRAeS, Senior Research Fellow in Air Power Studies, University of Birmingham

10:30 Networking Break

10:50 STRATEGIC CONTEXT Speaker: Seb Cox, Head of the Air Historical Branch, Royal Air Force

11:35 CHASTISE IN CONTEXT – A SERIOUS DIVERSION OF STRATEGIC STRENGTH? PERSPECTIVES FROM A NAVAL HISTORIAN To understand the significance of the Dams raid one must understand the situation in the war against Germany as a whole including the maritime. Did ’s demand for long range aircraft risk jeopardising the Atlantic communications upon which the entire war effort depended? Was the situation in the Atlantic really an overriding priority in British perceptions? How serious were the mercantile losses and what were the real challenges to Allied shipping? Elsewhere, the gamble of Operation Torch was vindicated in May with final victory in North Africa. This would open up more Mediterranean opportunities that would contribute to Soviet victory. At this time, the Red Army was recovering from defeats at Rzhev and Kharkov. The best way to assist them was to attempt to inflict serious damage on Germany’s industrial base. Speaker: Eric Grove, Naval Historian and International Security Analyst

12:20 Networking Lunch

13:20 THE MEANS - THE TOOLS FOR THE JOB This paper will cover the early schemes proposed for breaching the dams including the one by Barnes Wallis that the Air Ministry rejected. The context will be that of the RAF’s bombing capability in the late 1930s and Bomber Command’s results as assessed in 1941. It will cover the development of the Upkeep ‘’ including the contributions of the National Physical Laboratory and the Road Research Laboratory. The two types of dam design will be outlined: the masonry gravity type of the Mohne and Eder and the concrete core earth embankment type of the Sorpe. The effectiveness of upkeep against these very different dam types will be assessed and a proposal for a Sorpe specific attack method will be offered; a method that was available at the time. The factor of bomber escort and defence suppression will also be covered. Speaker: Paul Stoddart FRAeS

CONFERENCE PROGRAMME

Air Power / Historical Conference

THE DAMS RAID 75 YEARS ON Sponsor REVIEWING OPERATION CHASTISE

LONDON / 17 MAY 2018

14:05 GREAT EXPECTATIONS AND MISSED OPPORTUNITIES Critics claim that the results of Operation Chastise failed to meet the expectations of the planners and that the operation was an extravagant and costly one-off side show. Further criticism is levelled at the failure to capitalise on the damage and disruption caused by conducting follow-up attacks. This paper looks at the extent to which the operation achieved the aspirations of its instigators and places the operation in the broader context of the Battle of the . In doing so it also examines additional resulting factors and consequences which further contributed to an undermining of the German war machine. Supplementary operations to interfere with repair work and exacerbate the disruption caused by Chastise are also considered, as are the implications of Air Marshal Harris’s decision to retain No. 617 Squadron as a specialist precision bombing squadron. Speaker: Dr Robert Owen, Official Historian, No.617 Squadron Association

14:50 Networking Break

15:10 ASSESSMENT Speaker: Dr David Jordan, Senior Lecturer in Defence Studies, King’s College London

15:55 INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES Much of the debate about Operation Chastise focuses on British perceptions of the raid. In this presentation, I intend to examine how the Germans reacted to the mission and how they adapted their defensive preparations as a consequence of the ongoing threat posed by Upkeep. In addition, the presentation will explore the reactions of our principal allies. Did the raid influence Stalin’s perception of the West? Did the mission influence, Soviet technical programmes? In contrast, in the United States, was the mission seen as an example of British ingenuity or as a decisive contribution in the ongoing campaign against German industry? Speaker: Paul Strong, Independent Research Professional

16:30 PANEL DISCUSSION - Q&A

16:50 CONCLUSION

17:00 CLOSE