Northern Ireland in the Second World War – the Polish connection
This subject is a significant aspect of the history of the Second World War as it affected Northern Ireland.
Following Nazi Germany’s unprovoked invasion of Poland in September 1939, numerous members of the Polish military who did not lose their lives in resisting the initial blitzkreig eventually made their way to the United Kingdom to carry on the struggle from there. So much so, in fact, that by March 1943, 14 squadrons of the Royal Air Force had been formed to accommodate Polish airmen and airwomen, almost exclusively. They were numbered in the series 300-318, excluding 310-313 which were Czech-manned units (there was no 314 Squadron). Two of the Polish squadrons, 315 ‘Deblinski’ and 303 ‘Warsaw-Kosciusco’ Squadrons, were stationed at RAF Ballyhalbert airfield, in the fighter defence role, from July until November 1943 and November 1943 until the end of April 1944, respectively. In addition, Polish airmen served in conventional RAF squadrons that were based in Northern Ireland for varying periods of time; for example, 245 Squadron, which was based at RAF Aldergrove from July 1940 until July 1941, in the fighter defence role.
Polish airmen were renowned for their courage and high-spiritedness, utterly dedicated to the defeat of Nazi Germany. This was reflected in a number of ways, one being their determination to fly in all manner of conditions, including bad weather which other pilots would have considered quite unsuitable for flying, with an inevitable outcome on occasions. By the end of the war, the bodies of 15 Polish airmen had been laid to rest in graves in various parts of Northern Ireland, the circumstances of their deaths being as follows.
Glenavy Roman Catholic Graveyard
Sergeant Franciszek Pretkiewicz, a member of 245 Squadron based at RAF Aldergrove, was airborne over the northern part of Co Antrim on exercise on 30 November 1940 when the engine of his Hurricane fighter seized, resulting in the aircraft going out of control and hitting the ground at high speed near Cushendall. It is thought that he had attempted to bail out because his parachute lines and body were entangled in the wreckage of the aircraft. He began his career in the Polish Air Force NCO’s Training School in 1933, as a mechanic with elementary pilot’s training and went on to become a fighter pilot. He was posted to the 6th Aircraft Regiment in Lwow and enlisted into 161 Fighter Squadron, as a member of which he took part in the September 1939 campaign as part of the ‘Lodz’ Army. On 3 September, he shot down a Heinkel He 45 and on 6 September was credited with a half-share of a Heinkel 111 bomber. On 19/20 September he was evacuated to Romania. After reaching France, he took part in the French campaign, defending the aircraft industry. After the collapse of France, he was evacuated to the UK, arriving on 27 July 1940. He received a short period of training and on 23 September was posted to 307 Squadron, a Polish night fighter unit of the RAF. On 11 October, he was transferred to 303 Squadron, only to be posted again, on 8 November, to 245 Squadron at RAF Aldergrove, Co Antrim. His decorations included the Krzyz Walecznych with Bar. The Merlin engine of his wrecked aircraft was recovered from the wreck site more than 40 years after the tragedy and is now part of the Ulster Aviation Collection [www.ulsteraviationsociety.org]
Belfast (Milltown) Roman Catholic Cemetery
Flight Sergeant Klemens Adamowicz, age 32, from Zamosc Sergeant Stanislaw Czerniawski, age 25, from Patoki
Sergeant Pawel Kowalewicz, age 26, from Piaski Stare
Sergeant Kazimierz Lugowski, age 23, from Chromo-Zbuczyn
Sergeant Wincentry Pietrzak, age 27, from Swieciniec-Mirzewo
The above men, with another who was buried elsewhere (see next page), constituted the crew of a Wellington bomber of 304 (Polish) Squadron of RAF Coastal Command based at Predannack in Cornwall, England, which flew into the slopes of Mount Brandon in Eire during the night of 20/21 December 1943 when returning to base from an anti-U-boat patrol over the Bay of Biscay, possibly during a snowstorm. All the crew were killed on impact, their bodies being found in and around the wreckage, which was not burned. With due ceremony, the bodies were handed over to the UK authorities at the border between Eire and the UK near Middletown, Co Armagh.
Sgt Jozef Antoni Pudelko, age 23, was a member of 6 Anti Aircraft Co-operation Unit based at RAF Newtownards airfield and the pilot of a Lysander communications and target-towing aircraft of the Unit which crashed on taking off from RAF Belfast (now Belfast City Airport) on 23 April 1942. No further details.
Sgt Edward Lewandowski, age 22, was also a member of 6 AACU who was killed when the Lysander aircraft he was piloting hit a balloon cable at RAF Belfast airfield and spun into the ground. No further details.
Carnmoney Jewish Cemetery
Sgt Naftali Pawel Kuflik, age 20, was the sixth member of the crew of the Wellington which flew into Mount Brandon, Eire on 20/21 December 1943. He was born in Cologne in Germany, to a Polish family of German descent and was the aircraft’s Navigator.
Newtownards (Movilla) Cemetery
Wing Commander W E Heller, age 48, who was based at RAF Jurby airfield in the Isle of Man was one of two pupil navigators in an Anson aircraft from 3 School of General Reconnaissance at Squire’s Gate airfield, Blackpool which was in the course of a cross-country navigation exercise during the night of 18 October 1943. The aircraft, which was several miles west of its intended track, was forced to fly lower than intended by downdraughts induced by strong winds around Knocklayd Mountain, hit the ground and crashed against a house in Glenshesk, killing the Wing Commander and another member of the crew as well as a 22-year-old civilian girl who was standing outside the building at the time with her boyfriend.
Sgt Henryk Andrzej Flegier, age 30, a member of 315 Squadron, based at RAF Ballyhalbert, was killed when the Spitfire fighter he was piloting crashed 2 kilometres north west of the airfield when carrying out a practice interception on 5 October 1943.
Sgt H Komenda, age 22, a member of England-based 256 Squadron, RAF who was on temporary attachment at RAF Newtownards as a member of a special flight of Defiant night fighters, was killed along with his non-Polish air gunner when the Defiant he was piloting crashed on 9 July 1942, at Ballycarry, near Carrickfergus, Co Antrim.
Ballycranbeg (Mount St Joseph) Roman Catholic Graveyard, near Kircubbin
Warrant Officer Stanislaw Grondowski, age 34, who was a highly experienced and respected pilot, was leading a flight of three Spitfires of 315 Squadron, based at RAF Ballyhalbert, for practice formation flying on 11 September 1943. In bad weather over the hills immediately west and north of Belfast, the aircraft became separated and in the course of trying to find each other, crashed in various places. Grondowski died when his Spitfire flew into the ground near Plantation House, close to Lisburn.
Sgt Wladyslaw Kolek, age 26, who had joined 315 Squadron only two days beforehand, was one of the pilots with Warrant Officer Grondowski. Kolek, about whose personal history little is known, was also killed, his Spitfire having flown into the ground beside a farmhouse occupied by the McCartney family one quarter of a mile east of Flush Road, Ballyutoag, south Antrim, setting fire to a hayshed (Map reference J290805). Kolek’s body was thrown clear on impact and was found by a member of the McCartney family. The third pilot, Sgt Zygmund, survived his crash, albeit seriously injured. Zygmund’s Spitfire crashed on the north west-facing slopes of Collinward Mountain, Glengormley.
Pilot Officer Jerzy Ryszard Tuczemski, age 24, who had joined 315 Squadron less than six weeks beforehand, was killed on 22 August 1943 in the course of a low flying navigational training sortie. His Spitfire was observed to be experiencing engine trouble prior to flying into the ground on Long Mountain, north, north east of Rasharkin, Co Antrim.
Note: Thanks are due to the Polish Institute & Sikorski Museum, London for information used in compiling this report, also to Mr Ben McCartney.
Ernie Cromie Ulster Aviation Society
31 October 2016
Through Your Eyes 