Graduate earns RAF Museum's academic prize for dissertation

Oliver Nobbs, a graduate of our MA Intelligence & Security Studies and BA Contemporary Military and International History programmes, is the recipient of the RAF Museum’s Masters Prize for his fascinating thesis about the history of the ‘V Force’ – the RAF’s strategic nuclear strike force during the 1950s and 1960s.

His thesis, The Shaping of the V-Force: The Influence of Political and Diplomatic Factors on Decision-Making Regarding the British Sovereign Airborne Nuclear Deterrent, July 1945 to June 1969, was written as his dissertation for his master’s studies. The judging panel deemed the work as ‘a well-written, original piece of research that was well-supported with a broad range of relevant sources and an enjoyable read.’

Oliver said: “This was a national competition so I was really not expecting to win at all. I just submitted it on the off chance that it could win and I’m just starting to get my head round to the fact that I did win and it was not an elaborate joke!

“I’d previously studied the area of nuclear deterrents in the twenty-first century and I was really interested in doing a larger scale analysis from the previous century.

“Whilst there has been a lot of research on the Cold War and the nuclear deterrents developed by the Americans and the Soviets, there wasn’t that much written on the British nuclear deterrents of the time. Due to a variety of factors, such as the security restrictions placed on information around the V-Force, I discovered that this was a weak spot in academic literature and decided to take my research to new depths by writing my dissertation on it.”

Three bomber aircraft, dubbed the V-Force, were designed by the Royal Air Force in response to the increasing global nuclear threat post-World War II. They were intended to provide the UK with an effective nuclear deterrent by playing a crucial role in maintaining the balance of power between the Eastern and Western blocs following the creation of NATO.

The three types of aircraft, known as the Vickers Valiant, the Avro Vulcan and the Handley Page Victor were later replaced in the late 1960s by the Polaris submarine-launched ballistic missile system as the United Kingdom’s primary nuclear deterrent. However, the aircraft did continue to play a role in various capacities, such as aerial refuelling tankers and were also in operation during the Falklands Conflict in 1982.

The RAF Museum academic awards are a prestigious prize given to final year students, without regard to nationality or academic affiliation, on the recommendations of a selection panel that is composed of members of the RAF Museum’s Research Board.

Prizes are awarded for writing in the field of ‘air power studies’ in the broadest sense, encompassing areas of the history of air warfare, archaeology, international relations and strategic studies.

Oliver will now attend the RAF Museum’s 2025 conference at their headquarters in London this September, where he will be formally presented with his award. 

The alumnus added: “It really was an honour to win. I’m proud of the piece of work. I had writer’s block for a while so it means a lot to me that it was so well received. I’m very excited to attend my first academic conference in September.”

He is currently writing a PhD proposal that is focused on contemporary nuclear deterrents which he hopes to commence this year.