Re: 303 Squadron: Battle Of Britain Torrent Download [Xforce]
Harold Yengo
It soon became clear to the British that the Poles were extremely skilled pilots. In July 1940 the first Polish fighter pilots joined RAF Squadrons. Flying Officer Antoni Ostowicz and Flight Lieutenant Wilhelm Pankratz were posted to No. 145 Squadron RAF on 16 July. Three days later Flying Officer Ostowicz scored the first Polish kill in the Battle of Britain by sharing a He 111 over Brighton. Unfortunately he was also the first Polish pilot to die in the battle, shot down by Messerschmitt Bf 109s south of Swanage on 11 August. Finally the Poles joined the battle against the Germans on equal terms.
A total of 145 experienced and battle-hardened Polish airmen fought in the Battle of Britain - 79 airmen in various RAF squadrons, 32 in No. 302 (Polish) Fighter Squadron and 34 in No. 303 (Polish) Fighter Squadron.
Polish pilots in RAF squadrons played a substantial part in all operations against the Luftwaffe in increasing numbers. One of the finest examples of their work was a remarkable feat accomplished by Sergeant Antoni Glowacki of No. 501 Squadron RAF, who on 24 August claimed five enemy bombers, which were shot down in three combat sorties over one day. He was one of only three pilots who achieved 'Ace-in-a-Day' status during the battle and recalls the day's actions in his memoirs:
Commander-in-Chief of Fighter Command, Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding, who once was so reluctant to allow Polish pilots into battle, summarised their contribution in probably the most telling way:
They came together to defend the last staging point for a future liberation of Europe. The largest foreign contingent to fight in the Battle of Britain were the Polish. Over five devastating weeks, Poland had been crushed by invaders from Germany and the Soviet Union. Tens of thousands of Polish servicemen escaped to France to continue the fight. When Blitzkrieg swept through Western Europe, pilots of the Polish Air Force relished the chance to fight the Germans again, but despite their battle experience the French were reluctant to let them fly.
Craig Murray: "When the Polish airmen came to Britain there was a realisation they might be worth putting them into their own squadrons. In this case 302 and 303. Now they are formed relatively late into the battle, into August, but from the very start they're incredibly successful, and in the case of 303 Squadron they are the most successful allied squadron during the Battle of Britain.
With the Poles, the way they fight, they get very close to the enemy before they open fire which is a dangerous thing to do but it does ensure a kill more often than not. They're driven by something very different from the British in the sense that Britain is not occupied it may have been attacked but it's not the same as having your country occupied by an enemy force, so, they're very very keen as were the Czechs to bring the battle to the Germans."
The two Polish squadrons 302 and 303 entered service the same month. 302 Squadron excelled in its defence of London in September, accounting for nine aircraft on the 18th of September alone. By the end of the battle, it's score had reached 18 plus a further 12 probable kills. The contribution of 303 Squadron has become legend.
Craig Murray: "One particular group captain decided to test one of the squadrons just to see what their claims were they came back from one sort of quite shaken saying oh yes they do in fact get what they say they get. 303 Squadron has the highest kill count off any squadron during the battle; their kill ratio is something in the region of 14 to one.
On 9 November 1960, the Air Ministry published Air Ministry Order N850 which officially defined the qualifications for aircrew to be classified as having participated in the Battle of Britain. The AMO also defined the squadrons that were deemed to have fought in the battle under the control of RAF Fighter Command between 0001 hours on 10 July and 2359 hours on 31 October 1940; the official beginning and end of the battle.
No. 303 Squadron RAF, also known as the 303rd "Tadeusz Kościuszko Warsaw" Fighter Squadron,[a] was one of two Polish squadrons that fought during the Battle of Britain along with No. 302 Squadron, of 16 total Polish squadrons during the Second World War. Flying Hawker Hurricanes, the squadron claimed the largest number of aircraft shot down of the 66 Allied fighter squadrons engaged in the Battle of Britain, even though it joined the fray two months after the battle had begun.[1][2][3][4][5]
No. 303 Squadron claimed the largest number of aircraft shot down of the 66 Allied fighter squadrons engaged in the Battle of Britain, even though it joined the fray two months after the battle had begun.[1]
Its success in combat can be mainly attributed to the years of extensive and rigorous pre-war training many of the long-serving Polish veterans had received in their homeland, far more than many of their younger and inexperienced RAF comrades then being thrown into the fray. Tactics and skill also played a role; on one occasion, No. 303's Sgt Stanislaw Karubin resorted to extreme tactics to bring down a German fighter. Following a prolonged air battle, Karubin was chasing a German fighter at treetop level. As he closed in on the tail of the German fighter, Karubin realised that his Hurricane had run out of ammunition. Rather than turning back to base, he closed the distance and climbed right above the German fighter. The German pilot was so shocked to see the underside of the Hurricane within arm's reach of his cockpit that he instinctively reduced his altitude to avoid a collision and crashed into the ground.[15]
After a quiet start to the year, on 12 February 1942, No. 303 Squadron participated in the RAF's offensive response to the 'Channel Dash' of the German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. Led by W/C Rolski, the Polish Wing flew several sorties in bad weather.
No. 303 Squadron RAF is ranked among the best fighter units of World War II. At the time of the Battle of Britain in 1940, it was credited with shooting down 126 German machines, putting it in first place among the fighter squadrons in the battle. Four Polish squadrons fought in the Battle of Britain: two bomber squadrons (300 and 301), and two fighter squadrons (302 and 303). What is more, there were 81 Polish pilots in the British squadrons. According to official documents of the Polish Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) and a report by Robert Gretzyngier and Wojciech Matusiak, 145 Polish pilots took part in the battle, but this figure does not include Polish technical personnel, whose contribution to the victory was equally significant[3].
These words are highly recognized because they perfectly capture the desperate struggle that took place over the skies of United Kingdom 75 years ago. Less well known among the Canadian public is the role that their nation played in this decisive battle.
Two days later, No. 1 temporarily relieved an exhausted RAF unit at North Weald. They barely had enough time to land before they were scrambled. This was followed by another sortie in the afternoon, and it was in this latter encounter that No. 1 engaged the Luftwaffe in battle for the first time. It also brought the first victories that squadron scored as a unit. The engagement was intense, involving a formation of 25 to 30 Do 215s, of which No. 1 claimed three enemy aircraft and another three heavily damaged.
The next day, however, was so active and decisive that it has become the key date that is associated with the commemoration of the Battle of Britain. Having launched a massive raid on London, the Luftwaffe had selected September 15 as the day that they would try to inflict such serious damage on the capital that they hoped it would bring the British people to the point of capitulation. No. 1 was at constant readiness throughout the day, and twice it was scrambled to take part in this pivotal battle for survival.
From September 16 to 26, the squadron again witnessed a period where it constantly scrambled and was at an ongoing state of readiness, but saw little action. That did not change the fact the squadron was continually under stress as a lack of steady replacements meant that the pilots got little rest or prolonged leave. The strain was almost unbearable. Having started the battle with roughly 24 pilots, No. 1 had just over half that original number by mid and late September. Yet despite the exhaustion and hurdles, No. 1 nevertheless managed to have its most successful day of the entire battle on September 27.
The air battles of September 27 were the last time that the Luftwaffe appeared in force over the skies of southern England during daylight hours. While the battle itself was not yet over, No. 1 finally received the well-earned rest that they so desperately needed on October 9 when it was reassigned to 13 Group and the relatively quiet skies of Scotland.
After completing his training, Fiske was assigned to No. 601 Squadron. On 20 August 1940, his squadron scrambled and shot down eight enemy aircraft. Fifteen minutes into the battle, Fiske's aircraft was struck by German fire and he crash landed at RAF Tangmere. He died two days later after suffering burns. Fiske was one of 11 American pilots in Fighter Command and the second to die in battle.
No. 303 Squadron claimed the largest number of aircraft destroyed of the 66 Allied fighter squadrons engaged in the Battle of Britain, even though it joined the fray two months after the battle had begun.
Under the Anglo-Polish air forces agreement, each senior position in a squadron was to be filled by both a Polish and British officer. The two Polish flight leaders were Witold Urbanowicz, finally reunited with his former Kościuszko Squadron comrades, and Ludwik Paszkiewicz, who had been with 112 Squadron in Poland. In total four Polish squadrons took part in the battle (Polish 300 and 301 Bomber Squadrons; Polish 302 Fighter Squadron and Polish 303 Fighter Squadron) with 89 Polish pilots. Together with more than 50 Poles fighting in British squadrons, a total of 145 Polish pilots defended the British sky.
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