The ravages of the flood have made people deeply understand the cruel reality of "ruthlessness of fire and water". When confronted with the power of nature, human power seems so insignificant. Therefore, we always attach great importance to the prevention and control of flood disasters and build dams to protect people's lives and property.
However, during the war, there were also attacks on the dam with the intention of breaking the embankment in order to speed up the war. During World War II, Britain carried out one such operation, in which more than 100 pilots were involved in the bombing of the dam, and 53 of them disappeared along with the dam, causing the loss of thousands of lives in Germany.
So, did such an action really fulfill the "original intention" of the British?
Why bombing German dams? With the advancement of science and technology, we have developed from the simple way of diverting water in the past to building dams to store water for power generation and regulate drought and flood.
Although we have been able to control the water power, if the dam collapses, the disaster will be very serious. This is precisely why some people in Taiwan have claimed that as long as the Three Gorges Dam is blown up, the mainland will fall into chaos.
Although it is unrealistic for the Taiwanese to blow up the Three Gorges Dam, it is true that in history, there have been countries that have blown up the dams of other countries in order to win the war.
During World War II, the British launched an operation called the "Terminator", which aimed to destroy three dams on the Ruhr River in Germany, in order to severely damage German industrial facilities.
Germany's rise began in the industrial sector, and the Ruhr region is one of the most important industrial regions in Germany, located in the west of Germany, consisting of a region between the Ruhr and Per rivers.
This area occupies only 1 of Germany's land area3%, but occupies an important place in the industrial history of Germany and the world.
The Ruhr area is located in the necessary place for the exchange between the east and the west of Europe, and in modern times, it is located in the golden triangle of the most prosperous economy in Europe, which once contributed nearly half of Germany's industrial output value and became the material pillar of the two world wars.
Relying on the abundant coal resources, the Ruhr region has gradually developed steel, chemical and other industries, and has created military products that have attracted global attention, such as Krupp's cannons and Mauser's guns, etc., which are not only the makers of war, but also become a thorn in the side of opponents.
One of the most famous landmarks in the region is the Murnet Dam, the largest dam in Europe at the time, built in 1913 and providing the Ruhr region with abundant water and electricity**.
Together with the Eder Valley dams, the Müné-Eder dam complex forms an important part of Germany's industrial landscape and provides an indispensable water resource for the Ruhr region.
After the outbreak of World War II, although these dams did not directly serve the war effort, they provided a constant source of impetus for Germany to wage war. As the German air raids on London began, the British decided to implement an air battle plan against Germany, and the Ruhr area became a key British strike area.
In 1943, Britain and the United States decided to launch a joint bombing campaign against Germany, with the United States mainly responsible for striking factories in German-occupied Western European countries, while Britain was responsible for striking factories and targets in Germany itself, including the Murne-Eder Dam Group.
The British goal was to weaken Germany's military production capacity by blowing up the dams in the Ruhr area. Both sides understood that this action would cause huge losses to Germany. In order to prevent the attack of the British army, the Germans not only built the dam very strongly, but also set up a tight anti-aircraft net and underwater torpedo net.
However, due to the low accuracy of high-altitude bombing, the British Air Force needed to find a low-altitude bombing method in order to truly achieve "punitive action".
Through the tireless efforts of British experts and pilots, they succeeded in developing a way to crack the German dam defenses. They found that the Germans did not have a large number of blocking balloons in the river near the dam, which gave the bombers a passage through which they could cut into the bombing.
However, a new question arises: how do you find a bomb that is both accurate and powerful enough to ensure that the dam is blown up?
British aeronautical engineer Wallis was inspired by the game of "Splash Down" and invented a new ** called "Ricochet Bomb". The ricochet is in the shape of a drum and is capable of spinning backwards at a speed of 500 revolutions per minute, allowing the bomb to jump forward on the water as if it were "playing in the water" when dropped by the Air Force at a height of about 18 meters.
When the ricochet comes into contact with the dam, it will also use a hydrostatic fuse to lead the charge to roll to the bottom of the dam to ensure lethality. After arduous training, the British Air Force developed a well-developed "Operation Correction" plan and prepared to carry out this mission.
The bombing mission will be carried out by RAF Squadron 617, consisting of 21 bomber crews, and their commander is the experienced Guy Gibson, who has flown more than 170 bombing missions and has extensive experience.
The British Air Force carefully planned the mission, targeting the Murnet Dam and the Zolpe Dam as the main targets, while the Eder Dam and the Eder Dam upstream were used as alternatives.
These three dams, which provide water for domestic and industrial use in the Ruhr area, would be devastating if they were blown up. To ensure the success of the mission, the entire 617 squadron was divided into 3 groups.
The first group consisted of 9 bombers, whose first task was to bomb the Murnet Dam, and if there were remaining bombs, they would also bomb the Eder Dam. The second group, consisting of 5 bombers, was responsible for bombing the Zolpe dam.
The third group, which served as a reserve group, also consisted of 5 bombers, was to set off 2 hours after the first two groups. If the first two groups fail to complete the task, they will move on to the main target, otherwise they will attack the dam of the alternate target.
At 9:28 p.m. on May 16, 1943, only 19 bombers successfully departed for duty, while the rest of the crew members were absent due to illness. They needed to carefully reduce the altitude and drop bombs from 18 meters in the air while avoiding German anti-aircraft fire.
However, shortly after the bomber crew arrived off the coast of the Netherlands, it happened**: the radio crew of one of the bombers was hit by anti-aircraft fire and unfortunately died, resulting in the plane having to turn back.
Another plane flew too low and hit the waves, causing its suspended ricochet to lose and have to return. In addition to this, a plane was shot down by anti-aircraft fire and crashed after successfully flying across the straits.
In addition, there was also a plane that crashed because it flew too low and unfortunately hit a high-voltage power line.
Although some of the planes crashed or were forced to return before reaching their destinations, the courageous attempts of Strike Group 1 brought an important turn in the fighting. They managed to drop a number of bombs before they were shot down, ricocheting made on the water"Three perfect bounces", and finally hit the Murnet Dam, successfully blowing a large gap of more than 150 meters, and the flood water gushed out like a wild horse.
The surviving attack team members and aircraft then quickly turned to the Eder Dam in preparation for the next fierce battle. The terrain of the Eder Dam is complex, and although the Germans have deployed little anti-aircraft fire here, the difficulty of the attack should not be underestimated.
The attack team made seven or eight attempts, but all of them were unsuccessful, and even one ricochet, although successfully dropped, damaged the bomber because it jumped too high. However, they did not give up, and after a series of attempts, they succeeded in throwing a ricochet, making the Edel Dam resemble"Punctured cardboard"The same crash.
Their tenacity and perseverance make what seems like a hopeless situation look like. Their brave attempts caused a crack in the enemy's defenses. Their determination and belief inspire us to never give up in the face of difficulties and persevere to the end.
Zolpe Dam, one of the most tenacious targets of the British Air Force. Due to its unique earth-rock structure, even a breach will not lead to an overall collapse. The terrain around the dam is complex, making it more difficult to attack.
The pilot had to quickly pull up the plane within seconds after flying over the ridge and diving to drop the bomb, otherwise he would crash into the opposite ridge. This is a great test of the pilot's flying skills.
After nine attempts, the bomber crew finally managed to drop a ricochet, which, although successful**, only left a crack in the dam. Subsequent bombers also attempted to drop bombs, but failed to actually damage the dam.
The tenacity of the Zorpe Dam is impressive.
Despite the bombers' best efforts to bomb either the Ennap Dam or the Bevre Dam, no substantial damage was achieved. After the operation, the surviving crew members again embarked on a dangerous return journey, along the way two more planes were tragically shot down.
In the end, only nine aircraft managed to return to the UK. This time"Disciplinary Actions"A total of 133 crew members participated, of which 53 were tragically killed, the mortality rate was close to 40%, and more than half of the bombers were lost.
The heroic sacrifice of the 617 Squadron was exchanged for the catastrophic collapse of two German dams, and the flood swept down like a beast, sweeping a total of 80 kilometers, and countless farmlands, mines, villages, factories and transportation facilities disappeared in an instant.
The disaster dealt an incalculable blow to Germany's industry, agriculture and transport sectors. The latest declassified data shows that the death toll from the flood has reached at least 1,650.
The tragedy of the sudden arrival of the floods, which took place in the middle of the night and the loss of countless innocent lives, was tragic when the air raids were carried out in the middle of the night and most people were still asleep.
Has Britain really achieved its goal? It looks like Germany has been hit hard and the British "punitive operation" seems to have succeeded, but is this really the case? After the British army's "punitive operation", Wallis, the designer of the ricochet, said that he believed that Germany had suffered a "fatal blow" and would not be able to recover its "vitality" for at least a few years.
Britain was also extremely pleased with the operation, and on 22 June 1943, 34 members of the 617th Brigade received their honours at Buckingham Palace in recognition of their actions.
The 617th Squadron was awarded the badge of King George VI of England, which depicted a dam that had been struck by lightning and was accompanied by the famous words of King Louis XV of France: "Behind me, the flood is raging".
However, the optimism of the British did not turn out as hoped, and as it turned out, the operation did not achieve the desired goals. On 27 June, the water source** in the Ruhr area was fully restored, and the electricity** was subsequently restored to normal, with minimal impact on the Ruhr industry.
Moreover, although the attack resulted in thousands of deaths, more than half of them were prisoners of war and labourers, with little impact on industrial production in the Ruhr area.
The victims downstream of the Murnet Dam were not ordinary drowning people, but forced laborers in prisoner of war camps, mostly from the Soviet Union. The impact of the floods on agriculture was even more severe, and the Ruhr Valley, Germany's main food producing region, caused a large number of livestock deaths and reduced food production, causing a food ** problem in Germany, but the problem was quickly resolved.
The significance of this event was that it boosted the morale of the British, proved that the British could launch a counterattack in a difficult battle, and strengthened their confidence in winning the war.
This was the greatest encouragement to the Allies and strengthened their belief in the victory over Nazi Germany. From this point of view, this may have hastened the end of the war to a certain extent.
And the unintended benefit of Operation Punitive was that Wallis received more attention, and many of his "innovative" bombs began to be accepted and used.
This led directly to his theory of "** bombs", which in turn gave birth to the "goblet" and "slam" bombs, which caused great damage to Germany's infrastructure in subsequent operations.
While the means of war that blow up dams and cause floods may lead to victory, it is ordinary people who are hurt the most. Thus, in 1977, the Geneva Conventions explicitly prohibit any attack on dams in order to prevent innocent civilians**.
Despite the large number of civilians in Operation Discipline**, we must not forget the courage and spirit of the British pilots who faced death for the sake of victory.