Similar to when the escort carrier "HMS Audacity" had helped reduce the length of time Gibraltar convoys were out of range of protective aircraft in 1941, a year later the "Avenger" helped close the air gap on the Arctic convoy route. In September 1942, she was part of a powerful group that escorted PQ-18, the first Russia-bound convoy after the disastrous PQ-17 two months earlier. Day after day, her Hurricane fighters engaged German bombers as surface escorts attacked German submarines. A total of 13 merchant ships were sunk, but 41 enemy aircraft and three U-boats were destroyed as 27 merchantmen arrived safely. The return convoy, QP-14, suffered losses of two escort warships and three merchantmen. While the losses were considerable, it was evident that escorting with escort carriers could make an improvement. This pair of convoys also represented a turning point in the Arctic, since thereafter the demands on the German air force in North Africa and the Russian front reduced the number of aircraft that could be committed to attacking Arctic convoys.