PDA

View Full Version : Condensed History: The Ruhr Dam raids



FightingSteel1
Mar-13-2016, 18:00
I may have a little more information or images to add later, but for now here is:

Ruhr Dam Raids

As the air war opened up in the European theater with more American involvement and strikes reaching further and further into German itself, many interesting raids and battles occurred in 1943. This article will explore one particular operation to the Ruhr valley, officially known as Operation Chastise. This operation found specially equipped RAF bombers striking at the heart of German industry, hitting the vital dams of the region and flooding out a much needed region in the war effort.

Beginning

http://i397.photobucket.com/albums/pp55/vipe155/CondensedHistory/crew.jpg
The squadron, Guy Gibson center - photo credit Imperial War Museums

In early March 1943, a special squadron was formed in the RAF, initially known as Squadron “X”, to carry out a special mission to the German Ruhr Valley. This area was of great importance to the Germans. The valley contained the heart of German industry and large part of it's war effort. Factories like Krupp steel works were located in the area, as well as component factories supplying parts for aircraft and other weapons. Also, the disruption of power and water to a large area could have far reaching effects on material and morale. It had already been identified as a prime target location by the British before the war had even begun.

The leader of the hastily assembled group was Guy Gibson, a well-decorated pilot in the RAF's Bomber Command. Gibson was a well-liked pilot that had earned praise at each stop in his career. He was experienced with many different English aircraft; indeed he had flown Blenheim's at the beginning of the war, night fighting Beaufighters, and had transitioned to the Lancaster in 1942. He had three full tours completed in bombers, and had recently attained the rank of Wing Commander before being chosen as the leader of Operation Chastise.


The Lancaster and “Upkeep”...

http://i397.photobucket.com/albums/pp55/vipe155/CondensedHistory/Avro.jpg
Avro Lancaster- photo credit Imperial War Museums

The aircraft chosen for the raid was the Avro Lancaster, a four-engined heavy bomber in the RAF. The Lancaster quickly became the RAF, RCAAF and other European countries heavy bomber of choice, and was used extensively in the night bombing campaigns of German targets. The aircraft's large bomb bay (some 10m/33ft) allowed for a multitude of traditional and more unusual ordnance choices. By bulging out the bomb bay doors, or completely removing them, bombs from 3,600kg to 5,400kg were able to be equipped. Anything from AP bombs, mines, parachute incendiaries or huge 7.8m long (weighing 10,000kg) “Grand Slam” earthquake bombs were carried by the bomber. A special variant, B.III, was created for this mission by modifying the bomb bay and removing the dorsal turret.

This special weapon of choice for the mission was the “Upkeep” bomb, a 4,200kg bomb that resembled a depth charge. In fact, in was originally referred to as a surface torpedo for it's water skimming qualities. It's design allowed for it to be released, skip along across water, clang against it's target, then sink underwater before exploding. It's designer, Barnes Wallis, believed it to be very useful against Dams and ships moored in port. By exploding underwater, the explosion would be magnified and utterly decimate a ships hull/keel or the base of a hydroelectric dam.

http://i397.photobucket.com/albums/pp55/vipe155/CondensedHistory/upkeep1.jpg
"Upkeep" Bomb - photo credit National Archives

The Mission

Three principal sites were chosen as targets in the operation, the dams Mohne, Eder and Sorpe. The Mohne dam and it's smaller companion to the South, Sorpe, controlled about 75 percent of the water supply to the valley industries. Mohne was huge; the dam was 777 meters long, 36 meters high, and controlled a 19 km (12 mile) long lake with 140 million tons of water. Eder dam held back an even larger volume of water of 200 million tons. After preparations had been made, it was decided to hit the dams at night in the middle of May. It would be a full moon period with the right amount of visibility and water levels to help the mission succeed.

The group was soon named “617 squadron”, and an intense amount of daylight training was started to prepare for the mission. Tinted screens were placed over the Lancasters windows to simulate low light levels, and the pilots were encouraged to practice flying as low as possible. The run on the dams would need to be at around an altitude of 18m to be successful. To help cope with flying over water at this height, a spotlight system was put in place in the nose and tail sections that would shine and (at the right altitude) converge over the water. Also, special “roller” maps were used instead of large, cumbersome charts to ease the strain on the navigator (as the terrain was rushing by) at such a low altitude.

Continued in Part 2

FightingSteel1
Mar-13-2016, 18:00
On the night of 16th of May, 1942 19 Lancasters started to leave their base for the targets. Two routes were used by three groups. Formation one and two left first, with two taking a more Northern route. A reserve group, three, left early the next morning. While flying very low towards the Dutch coastline, formation two suffered it's first casualties. One craft flew too low and struck the water, ripping the Upkeep bomb away. They recovered, but had to return to base. Another Lancaster was hit by flak right after, and crashed into the Waddenzee sea, while another ran into electricity pylons and crashed near Rees, Germany. Of this group of five bombers, only one survived to make it to the target, and the Upkeep bomb from one of the crashed aircraft survived intact to be examined by the Germans.

The larger formation one fared better, but still lost one crew to electrical cables over Germany. They arrived at the Mohne Dam lead by Guy Gibson's craft and made the first run. Three Upkeeps successfully hit the dam, and it was breached. This group then turned towards the Eder dam to allow the remaining Lancasters to deploy their bombs. The Eder dam was surrounded by hills and difficult topography, and this was made more difficult by a layer of fog that had set in the area. In fact, the Germans considered the dam's location to be enough of a defense that few AA guns were placed in the area. After multiple attempts to line up for the attack, one Lancaster's bomb hit the top of the dam and severely damaged the bomber. Another made it through and scored a hit, but the dam held. It came down to the final Lancaster's run to finish the target off. After two attempts, the Upkeep hit the dam squarely and a huge wave of water leapt into the air. The Eder was breached, and the group could turn home.

The reserve group was now tasked with hitting the Sorpe Dam. This dam was a bit different than the others, as it was more of a natural earth construct/hill with a concrete reinforcing wall to seal in the water. Unlike the other two dams as well, an attack on this dam was to be made parallel to the structure/earth instead of at a right angle. The idea was that a right angle attack would just bounce the bomb up the earth hill and away from the dam, while a parallel attack at the midpoint would simply drop on the hill and hopefully roll down. After nine attempts through fog, and having trouble locating the target to begin with, one Lancaster managed to drop it's payload on the dam. A great blast erupted, but no break. With daylight approaching, all surviving bombers were back on the way to England with two major targets down.

http://i397.photobucket.com/albums/pp55/vipe155/CondensedHistory/animation.gif
Animation of attack procedure on Mohne/Eder

Aftermath

http://i397.photobucket.com/albums/pp55/vipe155/CondensedHistory/dam2.jpg
The Mohne Dam the next morning - credit Allied Air Reconnaissance collection

The next morning, RAF reconnaissance aircraft documented the success of the raid. The lakes behind the Eder and Mohne dam were completely drained. The entire countryside for over 30km were flooded out, with towns covered in water and infrastructure swept away. The entire area lost power, shutting down the nearby steel industries. A sad but impacting side effect of the raid was the death of thousands of livestock in the area as well.

German units were mobilized immediately to repair the damage. Several flak units were diverted to the area to protect what was left standing and the upcoming repair work. A major impact of the raid was the diversion of 20,000 workers from the Atlantic Wall project to rebuild the dams and restore electricity. While the entire region was back up and running in a short amount of time, and the dams completely repaired in a matter of months, that manpower was kept from completing other work that would have impacted the eventual invasion of Continental Europe.

The raids also carried a large human cost. 56 of the 133 Lancaster crewmen were missing or dead. 1,294 people drowned in the wave of water from the dams. More than half of that number would come from a Russian prisoner of war camp located past the Eder Dam.

The men of 617 squadron became a huge sensation, and were given the name “the Dambusters.” 34 medals were awarded to the men of the squad, and Guy Gibson was given the Victoria Cross. The group was also visited by the King and Queen for their accomplishments.

Final Thoughts

Guy Gibson was a celebrated figure in the RAF after the mission, and was sent to the United States on a PR tour with Prime Minister Winston Churchill. He returned to England to write an autobiography, and remained in a desk job in the RAF. But, he soon wanted to fly again, and against the wishes of others in RAF command he began training to fly the Mosquito. In September 1944 his aircraft went down over Holland after getting hit by flak.

After the war, the men of 617 squadron would occasionally get back together for reunions to celebrate their mission. A well-received movie, The Dambusters, was released in 1955. The final survivor of the mission, pilot Les Munro, died in 2015 at the age of 96. The men of 617 squadron trained hard, lost much, and completed a very unique and challenging mission over Germany. Their effort caused much destruction in lives and infrastructure, but the effects of the raid diverted resources badly needed by Germany away from the frontlines.