Back aboard HMS Pursuer, 881 operated in Norwegian waters, sinking patrol vessels and escorting Avenger aircraft on attacks and minelaying missions. The Wildcats protected both the strike aircraft and their escort carrier, combining offensive and defensive duties in the same deployment. In Operation Urbane, the squadron's work joined anti-shipping and mine warfare with the broader aim of maintaining pressure off Norway. The strategic effect was to encourage Germany to retain a substantial, well-equipped garrison there rather than redeploying those resources to the fighting in France.
Chapter · 35:45-36:56
Keeping pressure on German forces in Norway
Explore 881's late-war Norwegian operations, where its fighters protected strike aircraft, attacked patrol vessels, and helped keep German resources tied down.