Operation Leader

Operation Leader was an air attack conducted against German shipping in the vicinity of Bodø, Norway, on 4 October 1943, during World War II. The raid was executed by aircraft flying from the United States Navy aircraft carrier USS Ranger, which was attached to the British Home Fleet. The American airmen located many German and Norwegian ships in this area, destroyed five and are believed to have damaged another seven. Two German aircraft searching for the Allied fleet were shot down. Three American aircraft were destroyed in combat during the operation, and another crashed while landing.

The attack followed a two-year lull in Allied aircraft carrier operations against Norway and took the German occupation forces by surprise. The choice of target was guided by intelligence gained from decoding German radio signals and reports from Norwegian Secret Intelligence Service agents; two Norwegian airmen flew with the attack force to provide advice on the local geography. In addition to sinking ships, Operation Leader damaged the German war effort by considerably disrupting the convoy system in the region and reducing shipments of iron ore.