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After a dud day on the 19^th the Squadron made up for lost time by carrying out four operations (a record number to that date) an the 20^th. Three were against their old pre-D-Day friends, the "Noball" targets in the St. Omer area. Working From the advanced base at Manston the formation of seven pilots, F/L Fiset, F/Os Ray Brown, Johns, Hewson, Monson, Hogg and Rassenti, dropped 38 bombs on the site at Pihem in the course of their three sorties.  Thirty were seen to explode within the target area, several making direct hits or very near misses on the buildings.  That evening eight other pilots led by S/L Norsworthy made a low level attack on a small railway bridge near St. Julien. Despite very poor weather they registered two direct hits and twelve near misses.

About midnight orders were received to equip all aircraft with one long range tank in readiness for ops at first light. The maintenance crews were quickly on the job and by working all night had the task almost completed by early morning; only lack of spares prevented a 100 % report. Their hard work was for naught as cloud kept the aircraft on the ground the next day. On the 22^nd  however, the long-range tanks were put to use for the first time when F/L Dadson took a formation of eight on a deep penetration into France to attack "targets of opportunity". The aircraft carried one 500 lb. bomb and one 45 gallon tank each, except for the two fighter escorts which were fitted with two long-range tanks. The sortie lasted one hour and 40 minutes. The bombs were dropped on a small bridge near St. Lo, but no movement could be seen on the ground although the pilots reconnoitered a wide area from Lisieux southward to Laigle and Alencon. For Maurice Laycock the sortie was particularly significant. He had just crossed the Channel when mechanical trouble forced him to land on one of the emergency strips on the beach-head.  He returned to Hurn later in the day with a bottle of French wine as a souvenir of the Squadron's first landing in France.

On the 23^rd another long range recce was carried out over the roads between Mezidon, Falaise, Conde and Thury-Harcourt in the course of which the rail line at Mezidon was bombed, and five vehicles were strafed. This time Ray Brown was a bit delayed in getting home. Engine trouble made him take to his parachute a few miles from the Isle of Wight, but within five minutes (before he was in the sea long enough to get his feet soaked) an Air/Sea Rescue launch was on the scene and Ray was soon safe ashore. Operations from Hurn ended on 24 June with an early morning attack on the railway line and embankment at Pontchardon (twelve direct hits) and an evening foray by the whole Wing against targets near Cheux, west of Caen.

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