1942 1943 1944 1945 Associated articles On 9 February 1945, near the end of the Second World War, a force of Allied Bristol Beaufighter aircraft suffered many losses during an attack on the German destroyer Z33 and its escorting vessels; the operation was called Black Friday by the survivors.

The German ships were sheltering in a strong defensive position in Førde Fjord, Norway, forcing the Allied aircraft to attack through massed anti-aircraft fire (FlaK).

The decision to attack Z33 and her escorts, rather than a nearby group of merchant ships, followed instructions from the Admiralty to RAF Coastal Command.

Due to Allied victories in France and Eastern Europe, German shipping was largely confined to the lower Baltic and Norwegian waters by late 1944.

This left ports in Norway as Germany's last remaining bases to continue the Battle of the Atlantic and conduct trade with Sweden.

[1] When the Baltic iced over during the winter of 1944–45, Germany was forced to transport its vital imports of Swedish iron ore from the port of Narvik in northern Norway.

[2] As German maritime transport routes through Norwegian waters increased in importance, the Royal Air Force Coastal Command transferred seven squadrons of anti-shipping aircraft from bases in eastern England to northern Scotland during September and October 1944.

To find German ships, the two wings sent out aircraft on almost daily patrols along the Norwegian coastline from the Skagerrak to Trondheim.

By December 1944, patrols were also routinely escorted by RAF Mustang Mk III fighters and accompanied by Vickers Warwick air-sea rescue aircraft.

[4] Only one squadron of Mustangs was available, as these long-ranged fighters were needed to escort daylight raids by heavy bombers against Germany.

[10] It was intended that Z31, which had completed initial repairs at Bergen after being heavily damaged in the Action of 28 January 1945, would join her to make a joint passage to the Baltic.

[11] Z33 ran aground in Brufjord on 7 February, damaging her port shaft and propeller and causing both engines to fail.

[18] Davenport sought to minimise Allied casualties, but the location of the German ships in a narrow and protected fjord meant that the operation was inherently risky.

[12] After the attackers crossed the Norwegian coast at 3:40 pm, two Beaufighters from 144 and 489 Squadrons detached themselves from the main force and pressed ahead as outriders.

[23] Several minutes later, the main body of the raid reached the southern shore of Førde Fjord, travelling north.

To their surprise, the Allied planes passed directly over the German ships and came under intense fire from anti-aircraft guns, though no aircraft were hit.

[18] The narrow confines of the fjord also meant that the Beaufighters had to attack individually from one direction, rather than by swamping the German defences as they normally sought to do.

[22] At about this time 12 Fw 190s arrived at Førde Fjord and flew through German flak to intercept the Beaufighters waiting their turn to attack.

[33] A second squadron of Mustangs was also transferred to protect Coastal Command aircraft operating near Norway from early March.

[26] Milson was awarded a bar to his Distinguished Service Order on 13 July 1945 for his leadership and courage during the raid on Førde Fjord, which was described in the citation as a "brilliantly executed operation".

[19] The Air Combat Museum in the town of Naustdal also houses photos, maps, aircraft parts and other artefacts relating to the battle.

[35][36] Two of the Fw 190s of JG 5 that flew against the RAF Beaufighters and Mustangs survive, one, an F-model airframe with factory serial number or Werknummer of 931 862, that crashed as a result of the "Black Friday" aerial engagements was found and recovered in September 1983.