CONFERENCE PROGRAMME
Air Power / Historical Conference
THE DAMS RAID 75 YEARS ON Sponsor REVIEWING OPERATION CHASTISE
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 Bomber Command’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 ‘bouncing bomb’ 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 Ruhr. 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