Torfinn Bjørnaas (1 August 1914 – 15 September 2009) was a Norwegian resistance member. He was born in

Sulitjelma , , or is a village in Fauske Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. Sulitjelma is situated in a lush inland valley at an elevation of above mean sea level, above sea level. It is located on the shore of Langvatnet (Fauske), Langvatnet lake, ...

, but the family soon moved to

Løkken Verk Løkken Verk (or simply ''Løkken'') is a village in Orkland Municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located south of the village of Svorkmo, east of the village of Bjørnli, and north of the municipal center of Meldal (village), Meld ...

. He served his

compulsory military service Conscription, also known as the draft in the United States and Israel, is the practice in which the compulsory enlistment in a national service, mainly a military service, is enforced by law. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it contin ...

in His Majesty The King's Guard in 1936, and attended Trondheim Technical School and a ''Technische Hochschule'' in Germany. He visited Norway in the spring of 1940, and while he was here World War II reached Norway with the German invasion. Bjørnaas participated in the subsequent fighting to repel the invaders, but Norway capitulated. Bjørnaas tried to reach Northern Norway via Sweden, then England, but both to no avail. In the spring of 1941, Bjørnaas and others fled to England via India. He went through training for the

Norwegian Independent Company 1 Norwegian Independent Company 1 (NOR.I.C.1, pronounced ''Norisén'' (approx. "noor-ee-sehn") in Norwegian) was a British Special Operations Executive (SOE) group formed in March 1941 originally for the purpose of performing commando raids during ...

in England and Scotland, and was later dispatched to Norway to conduct sabotage. He was best known for the Thamshavn Line locomotive sabotage in 1943, but also had sabotage missions in Sulitjelma and Terningmoen. He is also known for missing an assassination attempt on

Henrik Rogstad Henrik Rogstad (13 April 1916 – 10 May 1945) was a Norwegian politician. He was a police chief for the Norwegian fascist party ''Nasjonal Samling''. During the Second World War he was a ''fylkesfører'' (''Gauleiter'') in the county of Sør-Tr� ...

in 1945, an attempt to which the central leadership of

Milorg Milorg (abbreviation of militær organisasjon – military organization) was the main Norwegian resistance movement during World War II. Resistance work included intelligence gathering, sabotage, supply-missions, raids, espionage, transport of ...

had given the green light. He was decorated with the

War Cross with Sword The War Cross with Sword ( Norwegian Bokmål: ''Krigskorset med sverd, '' Norwegian Nynorsk: ''Krigskrossen med sverd'') is the highest ranking Norwegian gallantry decoration. It is awarded for extraordinary brave actions or extraordinary lead ...

, the St. Olav's Medal with Oak Branch, the

Defence Medal 1940–1945 The Defence Medal 1940–1945 () is the award rewarded to those military and civilian personnel who participated in the fight against the German invasion and occupation of Norway between 1940 and 1945. The Defence Medal 1940–1945 can be award ...

and the

Haakon VII 70th Anniversary Medal Haakon VII 70th Anniversary Medal is a Norwegian military award, which was instituted by King Haakon VII of Norway on 27 October 1942. It was awarded in recognition of military personnel who served in the Norwegian armed forces in Britain on the ...

. He was a member of the Linge Club, for Norwegian Independent Company 1 veterans. A square in Løkken Verk, ''Torfinn Bjørnaas' plass'', has been named after him. Bjørnaas spent his professional career in Orkla Grube Aktiebolag at Løkken Verk. He was active in the

Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting ...

, and was an active sport shooter in the club

Løkken IF Løkken Idrettsforening is a Norwegian sports club from Løkken Verk, Sør-Trøndelag. It has sections for association football, speed skating and Nordic skiing. It was founded on 21 November 1896 as ''Meldalskogen SL''. The name was changed to ...

and the

National Rifle Association of Norway Det frivillige Skyttervesen (DFS) (), known in English as the National Rifle Association of Norway, and by DFS themselves as the Norwegian Civilian Marksmanship Association since 2020, is a civilian marksmanship association in Norway and the lar ...

. He died in September 2009.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bjornaas, Torfinn 1914 births 2009 deaths People from Meldal Norwegian expatriates in Germany Norwegian Army personnel of World War II Norwegian resistance members Norwegian Special Operations Executive personnel Norwegian male sport shooters Recipients of the War Cross with Sword (Norway) Recipients of the St. Olav's Medal with Oak Branch Sportspeople from Trøndelag 20th-century Norwegian sportsmen