KG 2 was the only Geschwader to be fully outfitted with the Do 217. Starting to replace the Do 17Z in 1941, KG 2 withdrew from the Russian Front and moved to the Netherlands for bombing and anti-shipping missions over the North Sea. The unit remained there until September 1944, participating in various cross-Channel operations, including Operation Steinbock, the ’little Blitz’ of January 1944, which was launched by Hitler in retaliation for the RAF’s nightly bombing raids.