Shetland Bus

The compelling and touching story of the very special men and women who operated the Shetland Bus during World War II.

The Shetland Bus was the nickname of the clandestine special operations group that risked their lives in all weathers and conditions to rescue downed airmen from the clutches of the enemy and deliver supplies to the reisitance.

The Shetland Bus formed a permanent link between Shetland, Scotland, and German-occupied Norway from 1941 until the German occupation ended on 8 May 1945.

It was was operated initially by a large number of small fishing boats, and later augmented by three fast and well-armed submarine chasers.

Crossings were mostly made during the winter under the cover of darkness. This meant that the crews and passengers had to endure very heavy North Sea conditions, with no lights, and constant risk of discovery by German aircraft or patrol boats.

There was also the possibility of being captured whilst carrying out the mission on the Norwegian coast. However, early on it was decided that camouflage was the best defence and the boats were disguised as working fishing boats, with the crew as fishermen.

The crews of the Shetland Bus completed 198 covert missions between the Shetland Islands and Norway inserting 192 agents, delivering 383 tonnes of weapons and supplies to the Resistance and extracting 73 agents and 373 refugees from Nazism - always at great risk and all for four pounds a week, this is their story and the story of the families, friends and neighbours who supported them at great personal risk to themselves.