The brigade first saw action in the British airborne landings on D-Day Operation Tonga, where it was responsible for capturing the Caen canal and Orne river bridges. The brigade remained in Normandy until September 1944, by which time it had advanced to the mouth of the River Seine. Its next engagement was in reaction to the surprise German offensive in the Ardennes, the Battle of the Bulge. This was followed by Operation Varsity, the last Allied airborne mission of the war. After this, the brigade advanced across Germany, reaching the Baltic Sea by the end of fighting in the European theatre.