James Stagg

The Group Captain (Colonel in British aviation) James Martin Stagg (June 30th 1900 - June 23rd 1975) was the chief Météorologue at the general headquarter British and responsible to have convinced the general Dwight D. Eisenhower to change the day of the unloading for the morning of the June 6th 1944.

Formation

James Stagg was born with Dalkeith, Midlothian, Scotland. He obtained a Doctorat Université of Edinburgh. He became an assistant with the Met Office, the British office of meteorology, in 1924 and directed British forwarding in the Canadian Arctic in 1932 - 33. Starting from 1939, it is named director of the Kew Gardens Observatory but in 1943, it is transferred in RAF with the rank from Group Captain and became the weather adviser of Eisenhower.

Unloading of Normandy

There were three groups of meteorologists: Royal Navy, Met Office and USAAF, which worked independently, referring to James Stagg forecaster chief to the district-general, to provide councils to the Eisenhower general on his planning of the Opération Overlord. Originally, the D-day was to be launched on June 5th, 1944 but the bad weather promised to be prolonged several days around this date and 19, next day with a favorable tide, had been suggested like change in the plan. To 04:30 the morning of June 4th, the forecast provided by Sverre Petterssen and the other meteorologists significantly contributed to the decision of Eisenhower to give the unloading to June 6th. Indeed, each of the three teams had envisaged a lull on June 6th.

Fortunately, the forecast proved to be good because on June 19th, one of the most violent storms of the century affected the English Channel. June 17th, all the teams envisaged perfect atmospheric conditions for on June 19th showing that all was not yet perfect in the methods of forecast. If the unloading had been launched the 5, the losses allied S would have probably been much higher and still worse 19.

The version of the contribution of the various groups in the forecast of time for the D-day started to be distorted after the war. The policy of Petterssen always was not to individualize work but American Krick and the Stagg British tried each one to draw the cover on their side. Finally, Petterssen devoted five chapters of its memories to the Overlord Operation, to give the pendulums per hour (1971).

Anecdote

For the little story, an English law of 1677 condemned to roughing-hew the meteorologists, taxed with Sorcellerie. But fortunately for Stagg and the Alliés the law was not always applied to the letter. It was repealed only in 1959.

Post-war period

Stagg worked as directing of the services to the Met Office until in 1960. He was elected Fellow Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1951, was made knight in 1954 and was elected president of the Royal Meteorological Society in 1959.

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