Liberation Convoy vessels to cross North Sea to celebrate unsung war heroes

A peacetime convoy of former World War II vessels will cross the North Sea in May to celebrate unsung British and Norwegian heroes, as Europe commemorates the 80th anniversary of VE Day.

The flotilla is made up of historic fishing boats and a merchant ship.

These boats were used to smuggle special forces soldiers, secret agents and freedom fighters from Shetland to Norway, along with explosives, weapons and radios for the resistance movement.

On their return journeys, they brought back refugees and soldiers fleeing Nazi-occupied Norway.

The perilous route, which risked the constant threat of discovery by German submarines and planes, was famously dubbed the “Shetland Bus” by the fearless sailors who navigated it, and the British soldiers who took part in the operation.

Captain Jack Cowie of the Gordon Highlanders was the liaison officer for Norwegian fishing boats in transit to and from Shetland through Aberdeen.

His daughter Isabell Jack said: “Obviously, it was a secret operation, so not much was said to us as children. But Dad was well-liked and had a nice manner about him, with a warm sense of humour, and integrity, and I think this helped him in this role.

“Dad was proud of what he did, but he wasn’t a man to make a fuss, and after the war ended, he returned to his job working for the bank, until he retired.”

Commemorating their bravery, many of the small boats originally used during WWII have been brought together again to take part in The Liberation Convoy.

MK Andholmen, was one of the vessels used for missions to Shetland, as well as Orkney and mainland Scotland.

“Ordinary Norwegians were trained as special forces soldiers in both England and Scotland,” said Per Ola Holm, the current skipper of MK Andholmen.

“Many went on to crew the Shetland Bus vessels as they dodged German submarines and war planes during their dangerous missions, or they returned home on sabotage missions and to fight the occupying Nazi regime.”

He added: “Everyone who crewed those small boats and ships taking the route knew they were risking their lives, but the fragile link it provided between the Shetland Islands, the Orkneys and occupied Norway was just too important.”

Another vessel from the convoy is the merchant ship D/S Hestmanden.

She served as part of the Norwegian merchant fleet, which operated from the UK throughout WWII and helped secure supplies of medicine, food and fuel, as well as ammunition and weapons to aid the Allies’ resistance.

“The UK generously welcomed our Royal Family and government in exile after the Nazis invaded, and throughout the war some 30,000 Norwegian war sailors served the Allied resistance alongside Britain’s own mariners,” said Norwegian historian Ragnhild Bie, whose two grandfathers were both war sailors.

“Some 4,500 war sailors lost their lives and countless others endured psychological and physical traumas that affected them and their families long after the war had ended,” added Bie, who is serving as crew onboard Hestmanden, which has been turned into a floating war sailors’ museum.

The Liberation Convoy will cross from Bergen in Norway to Lerwick in the Shetland Islands for VE Day ceremonies on May 8, before it branches out to ports across the Shetland Islands, the Orkney Islands, Scotland, and England.

The convoy is “fitting recognition” of the alliance between Norway and the UK, and of Shetland’s special role, according to the Lord Lieutenant of Shetland, Lindsay Tullock.

He said: “As we commemorate and give thanks to those who were lost, we remember also the resilience of the men and women involved in the liberation of Norway and Europe.

“The arrival of the Liberation Convoy in Shetland will be an opportunity to acknowledge the long-standing alliance between the people of Shetland, the rest of the United Kingdom and Norway.

“People of Shetland have vivid memories and recollections of the covert Shetland Bus operations during the Second World War. The enduring relationship between Shetland and Norway has strengthened over the years and will continue to do so as we join together in Remembrance on the 80th Anniversary of the end of the War in Europe.”