"After me, the flood"

Shortly after 2100 hrs on the evening of Sunday 16th May 1943, a red Very light signalled the approval of engine start to Lancaster aircraft of 617 Sqdn, Royal Air Force on dispersals at RAF Scampton, Lincs. So began one of the most daring and famed operations in the history of modern aerial warfare - Operation Chastise or, 'The Dams Raid'. Ronald Richardson writes about one of the most famous chapters in RAF history. Photos by author or official sources as credited.

Prior to the outbreak of World War II a body known as the Air Targets Committee formulated plans for the destruction of German heavy industry. The majority of this, included numerous power stations and coking plants, many of which were located in the Ruhr Valley. In 1937, The Air Staff had drawn up similar plans which would be carried out in the event of war. One was to attack German industry including the country's oil supply. Priority targets therefore lay within the country's industrial heartlands such as the Ruhr and the Rhine valleys.  Implementation would therefore be delegated to Royal Air Force Bomber Command. By sustained effort involving large numbers of aircraft, it was argued that the enemy's war effort could in theory, be brought to a standstill in a relatively short period of time.

The Air Targets Committee then drew up an alternative proposal, involving two targets - the Mohne and Eder dams. Destruction of these it was suggested, in addition to causing widespread flooding, would disrupt the production of electricity and other industrial processes. Dams, reservoirs and structures such as aqueducts were therefore studied in depth. However, difficulty lay in acquiring a suitable weapon with which to destroy such targets. In addition, the means with which to deliver it had not yet become available. Consequently, such efforts became hindered.

A visit to the museum, housed in one of the towers on the Derwent Dam wall also gave time to reflect - an inscription on the memorial at the entrance reads "They paid for our Freedom"

Dr Barnes Wallis, Assistant Chief Designer at Vickers Aviation, Weybridge, Surrey shared the view that modern warfare was dependent on industry. The latter was dependent on power supplies, the manufacture of which relied entirely on the supply of natural sources of energy such as coal, oil and water. Wallis therefore suggested that if the destruction of such sources could be completed, the enemy would in theory be incapable of being able to prosecute the war.

Sustained research and determination (in the face of opposition from the Air Staff) during the period 1941 -1943 would eventually see Wallis produce a method by which to attack targets such as dams. This was Upkeep, more commonly referred to as the Bouncing Bomb. The theory and subsequent development of this weapon have been discussed in detail during intervening years but lack of space on this occasion precludes these as part of this article. Suffice to say, the means of delivery became available as time progressed - the Avro Lancaster. To undertake such a mission, a new squadron was also formed. Initially known as Squadron X, it would become 617 Sqdn - The Dambusters, under the command of Wing Commander Guy Gibson.

At 2139 hrs on 16th May 1943, the first wave of aircraft, led by Wg Cdr Gibson, departed RAF Scampton to attack the Mohne and Eder dams. At 0056 hrs on 17th May, a signal was sent to HQ No 5 Group at Grantham Lincs, indicating that the former had been breached. Similarly, at 0206 hrs came communication that the wall of the Eder had given way. Second and third waves, totalling nine aircraft were detailed to attack the Sorpe, Ennepe, Lister and Diemel dams. They were less successful. Leaving RAF Scampton singly, neither achieved its objective, the Sorpe dam wall being superficially damaged. Sadly, of nineteen Lancasters to leave on the mission, eight did not return.

The event provided onlookers not only with a chance to observe and commemorate the sacrifice made by Squadron personnel, but with a unique opportunity to locate themselves on a hillside which is part of a narrow valley. From the resulting vantage point, it became possible to record the event from above as the accompanying photographs show. The occasion also allowed one to capture the Lancaster in a similar element to that in which the type had operated during the workup phase to Operation Chastise.