A brief period of service with the Royal Navy followed during which Davis-Goff served on an arctic convoy to Russia. In June 1942 he was posted to , a cruiser of the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN), which was part of the Mediterranean Fleet at the time but was soon sent to the Pacific. He participated in the Battle of Kolombangara, which took place in July 1943 in the Solomon Islands. During this engagement "Leander" was damaged. She went to the United States for a prolonged period to undergo repairs and refit, and Davis-Goff went with her. He was promoted to lieutenant commander in August 1944.