The War
The first Bf 109 aircraft arrived in Norway two days after the invasion on 9 April 1940. Throughout the war, the Bf 109 guarded the airspace over occupied Norway and the coast beyond. The aircraft was also used in attacks from Finnmark, deep into the Soviet Union.
The photo over shows Bf 109 at Værnes Airport, Trondheim. Plank surfacing was common at many of the airports operated by the Germans in Norway.
Top photo: Norwegian Aviation Museum
German overview showing Allied flight paths to Norway in May 1942.
©www.luftwaffe.be
Bf 109 pilot in Norway demonstrates to his comrades how he shot down an Allied plane.
From south to north
During 1940 and 1941, the Germans built several airports along the coast of Norway, from Kjevik in the south to Kirkenes in the north. Most of the Bf-109 aircraft were stationed in the south and west of the country, where the pressure from British aircraft was greatest.
When Germany attacked the Soviet Union in 1941, many Bf 109 aircraft were transferred to Eastern Finnmark and Northern Finland. From here, they supported air and ground attacks on Murmansk in the Soviet Union. The city was the main port for British and American convoys carrying war supplies to the Soviet Union across the North Atlantic.
Not involved in bombings
Several Norwegian cities were bombed during the German invasion in the spring of 1940. The Bf 109 aircraft were not involved in these bombings due to limited range.
German bombers, on the other hand, had orders to bomb all cities where they met resistance. Namsos, Steinkjer, Elverum, Molde, Kristiansund, Bodø and Narvik were destroyed in German bombings.
Photo: Frivik family album
Bodø was destroyed on 27 May 1940. The city was seen as a military support base for Narvik where fighting was taking place. 15 people lost their lives. Of the town’s 760 houses, 420 were destroyed in the bombing.
Allied air strikes
Allied aircraft were a constant threat to the German air supremacy. The Royal Air Force attacked targets on land and at sea and the Americans carried out large-scale bombing raids in Norway. Industry, airports, submarine bunkers, German convoys and other vital targets were attacked.
The precision level of that time was low. 752 Norwegian civilians were killed during Allied bombing raids in Norway. Many civilians also lost their lives in attacks on ships at sea.
In Kirkenes, on the border with the Soviet Union, the aircraft alarm went off more than 1,000 times, and there were 328 Soviet bombings. The Soviets attacked Kirkenes and East Finnmark to force the Germans out.
Photo: Norwegian Aviation Museum
Bf 109 I Norge. The planes were partly produced with the use of forced laborers and prisoners in German concentration camps.
From war to peace
On 18 October 1944, Soviet forces moved into Finnmark. The German forces withdrew through Finnmark and Nord-Troms while setting everything on fire behind them. In early November, all German airports in East Finnmark were abandoned.
On 12 November, the Tirpitz, the Germans’ largest battleship, was sunk in Tromsø by Lancaster bombers from the Royal Air Force. The Germans soon withdrew all their fighter planes from Northern Norway. These were redeployed along the coast between Oslo and Trondheim to defend coastal shipping against Allied attacks. The Luftwaffe suffered heavy losses. In Europe, the war was also coming to an end.
On 8 May 1945, the Germans surrendered in Norway without a fight.
©www.luftwaffe.be
Günther Scholz (left) and Heinrich Ehrler – two leading Luftwaffe officers in Norway. Ehrler is said to have shot down 208 aircraft in more than 400 combat missions.