[MacDK]

Reading up on my "Danish occupation history" I noticed that a great deal of people, and some weapons, were transported from Sweden to Britain (or the reverse) during the 2nd World War. One of my books mentions, that in the later war, the British made some successful weapons transports over Kattegat to Göteborg with fast moving motorboats, but it does not mention which methods were used earlier on, or which other methods were used in general.

As I understand it, we are talking about a substantial amount of transports. But how did these take place?

It would seem to me, that flying from Sweden to Britain would be pretty risky, considering that one would have to pass over German occupied territory in either Norway or Denmark, or over German controlled waters between the two countries. Did they perhaps fly over the North Pole to Canada/Greenland, and from there to Britain, minimising the time over "German" territory?

Did they use submarines perhaps? I would think this would also be risky, and if they did, it would not make sense that they later used fast moving motorboats for sea-transport, if submarines were working fine.

[Siberian Fox]

Sweden was a neutral country and a big supplier of iron ore to Germany*. It sounds feasible that a ship flying a Swedish flag would have been fine to sail in German controlled waters. Their only concern would have been from striking a mine or being torpedoed by a German submarine in British waters.

*IIRC, securing Swedish iron ore supplies for Germany and not the allies was the main reason for the invasion of Norway.

[MacDK]

Sweden was a neutral country and a big supplier of iron ore to Germany. It sounds feasible that a ship flying a Swedish flag would have been fine to sail in German controlled waters.

But such ships would likely sail to the German Baltic coast, and start on the Swedish east coast in the Gulf of Bothnia - Norway and Narvik were needed because the Swedish iron-ore ports in these waters frose during winter.

A ship flying a Swedish flag and sailing westwards into the North Sea would be a bit suspicious.

[Siberian Fox]

A ship flying a Swedish flag and sailing westwards into the North Sea would be a bit suspicious.

I would have thought that such ships would not sail straight for England but would take the Northern route as if sailing for another part of the world before turning South to a port on Britain's West coast. A Swedish ship could easily claim to be on it's way to a port in the USA before they entered the war, and South America after that.

[MacDK]

I would have thought that such ships would not sail straight for England but would take the Northern route as if sailing for another part of the world before turning South to a port on Britain's West coast. A Swedish ship could easily claim to be on it's way to a port in the USA before they entered the war, and South America after that.

That does seem logical and simple. I just have trouble believing it was that easy.

Why would Sweden be a part of this? At the beginning of the war they were very afraid that they were next if they did not oblige the Germans in many cases. Transporting German troops across Swedish territory etc. They would be gambling with their whole neutrality by allowing Swedish ships, or ships flying the Swedish flag, to transport allied personal.

Also, if it were that simple, then why would the allies later in the war use fast moving motorboats, and force their way through Kattegat by speed? Later in the war the Swedes were not as terrified of the Germans.