The contribution of Polish pilots, and particularly of the top-scoring 303 Squadron, to the Battle of Britain has become legendary but few people realise the breadth and depth of the Polish Air Force involvement in the RAF's operations during the war.
By the beginning of 1941 there was a fully fledged Polish Air Force operating alongside the RAF. With 14 Squadrons it was larger than any other of the Air Forces from Nazi occupied Europe. Over 17,000 men and women passed through the ranks of the Polish Air Force while it was stationed in the UK. They shot down 745 enemy aircraft, with a further 175 unconfirmed. They dropped thousands of bombs and laid hundreds of mines, flying 102,486 sorties and notching up a total of 290,895 operational flying hours. They achieved this at a cost of 1,973 killed and 1,388 wounded. They won 342 British gallantry awards.
Illustrations viii
Preface x
Maps xii
1 Knights Errant 1
2 Growing Wings 6
3 Black September 20
4 Balkan Farce 35
5 French Fiasco 44
6 Mist and Regulations 57
7 The Legend of 303 78
8 Fighting On 98
9 Bombing 124
10 A Growing Family 143
11 The Home Front 164
12 No Victory 181
13 Redundancy 202
Sources 221
Bibliography 226
Index 231
Overview
The contribution of Polish pilots, and particularly of the top-scoring 303 Squadron, to the Battle of Britain has become legendary but few people realise the breadth and depth of the Polish Air Force involvement in the RAF's operations during the war.
By the beginning of 1941 there was a fully fledged Polish Air Force operating alongside the RAF. With 14 Squadrons it was larger than any other of the Air Forces from Nazi occupied Europe. Over 17,000 men and women passed through ...