During the night of 27–28 May La Combattante met motor torpedo boats MTB-732 and MTB-739; the two groups mistakenly engaged each other, and MTB-732 was sunk.

Under commandant André Patou, La Combattante took part in Operation Neptune, providing close fire support to the landing parties during the Battle of Normandy off Courseulles-sur-Mer.

La Combattante kept escorting convoys in the Channel between France and England until 14 July 1944, when she was ordered to the King's Stairs of Portsmouth harbour; awaiting the ship's arrival were General Charles de Gaulle, Generals Béthouart and Koenig, Admiral d'Argenlieu, Gaston Palewski, Pierre Viénot, Pierre Billotte, François Coulet, Pierre de Chevigné, Geoffroy de Courcel, Pierre Laroque and Claude Hettier de Boislambert, preparing to cross the English Channel to Normandy[b] The delegation also carried a 250-million franc treasure to counter introduction of the US occupation franc.

One of the most famous photographs of De Gaulle was taken aboard during the journey,[2] aboard La Combattante before he landed at Courseulles[3] from where he made a speech in Bayeux which established with the allies his popularity with the French and played a large part in the failure of American plans to militarily govern France.

On the German side, a Kriegsmarine bulletin reported that La Combattante was destroyed at 10.28 a.m. on 24 February by two torpedoes fired by U-5330, a German midget submarine of the Seehund type commanded by lieutenant Klaus Sparbrodt, approximately 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) off the South-Fall Bank.