Operation Catechism

Operation Catechism
	Part of World War II
	; The Tirpitz's wreck painted by Stephen Bone
Date	12 November 1944
Location	Near Tromsø, Norway69°38′49″N 18°48′26″E / 69.64694°N 18.80722°E
Result	British victory
Belligerents
United Kingdom	Germany
Commanders and leaders
James Tait	Robert Weber †
Strength
29 bombers	Battleship Tirpitz; 2 flak ships; Anti-aircraft batteries
Casualties and losses
1 aircraft damaged	940–1,204 killed; Tirpitz destroyed

Operation Catechism was a British air raid of World War II that destroyed the German battleship Tirpitz. It was conducted on 12 November 1944 by 29 Royal Air Force heavy bombers that attacked the battleship at its anchorage near the Norwegian city of Tromsø. The ship capsized after being hit by at least two bombs and damaged by the explosions of others, killing between 940 and 1,204 members of the crew; the British suffered no casualties.

The attack ended a long-running series of air and naval operations against Tirpitz that sought to eliminate the threat she posed to Allied shipping. The battleship had been moved to the Tromsø area in October 1944 after being crippled on 15 September during Operation Paravane. This attack had been carried out by the RAF's elite Nos. 9 and 617 Squadrons, who unsuccessfully attempted to strike Tirpitz again at Tromsø on 29 October during Operation Obviate.

Operation Catechism re-used the plans for Operation Obviate, and was conducted by the same squadrons. The aircraft departed from bases in northern Scotland and, due to clear weather conditions, the Commonwealth airmen were able to accurately target and bomb the battleship. The bombers were unmolested by a unit of German fighter aircraft that failed to take off from nearby Tromsø in time. One bomber was significantly damaged by anti-aircraft artillery.

Tirpitz capsized within minutes of being hit. Rescuers picked up hundreds of her crew from the water, but few of those trapped within the hull were saved. Several German military personnel were convicted of dereliction of duty following the attack. The battleship's destruction was celebrated in Allied countries and Norway, and is commemorated by several memorials and displays in museums.