In the evening of the 5th of June 1944, 6 gliders took off from England carrying members of the 2nd Oxf. & Bucks Light Infantry Regiment were set to go behind enemy lines to capture 2 bridges around Caen in Normandy, these bridges were being prepared to be demolished by the Wehrmacht. The French Resistance had removed explosive charges several times to avoid the destruction of these bridges. People disagree why they needed to capture these bridges, some say it was to let British soldiers get through France from Sword Beach, others say it was to stop German forces from reaching the beaches faster. At 00:16 on the 6th of June, 3 Gliders, including one with Reginald Tyrer in, landed at Pegasus Bridge, the defence was not strong, one machine gun nest was taken out, another German Soldier yelled "Fallschirmjäger!" (paratroopers!) and then jumped into a trench before retreating. They held the bridges until relieved by the 7 Parachute Battalion, who landed at Merville battery. More Information

Everyone knows about the American involvement in the Ardennes Offensive, also known as the Battle of the Bulge, but the British and Canadian's played a part in the battle, and the 2nd Oxf. & Bucks were involved in this conflict. After 2 months of leave from September until December, the Oxf. & Bucks landed near the French-Belgian border at Givet, by the time they arrived in December, the German Offensive was already weakening. The battalion was moved to take part in holding the bridgehead at Dinant. They later supported the 13 Parachute Battalion during the Battle of Bure.

Operation Varsity was the largest airborne assault in history, with over 16,000 Allied paratroopers engaging around 8,000 Wehrmacht troops, resulting in an allied victory, this was the event that would spark the beginning of the Rhine river crossing. the Oxf. & Bucks played a role in this event too, with another glider-borne landing. The battalion lost half of its men almost immediately after landing, with heavy fire from ground and air by the Wehrmacht. The Oxf. & Bucks captured and held all objectives in this operation, with many members receiving medals such as the Military Cross, and the Distinguished Service Cross.

The 2nd Oxf. & Bucks played a leading role in the British advance into Germany, along with the rest of the 6th Airborne Division. They Advanced 300 miles into Germany on foot for most of it, they were the first allied unit to cross the Weser river in Northern Germany. Just one day before the official day of Victory in Europe, the 2nd Oxf. & Bucks were chosen to represent the British Army as Guards of Honour during the meeting between Field Marshal Montgomery and Konstantin Rokossovsky of the Red Army. They were relieved by the 5th British Infantry Division on the 17th of May staying at former German Barracks before being flown back to England