Polish 161st Fighter Escadrille
161. Fighter Escadrille was a unit of the Polish Air Force The Polish Air Force ( pl, Siły Powietrzne, , Air Forces) is the aerial warfare branch of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as ''Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej'' (). In 2014 it consisted of roughly 16,425 mil ... at the start of the Second World War. The unit was attached to the Łódź Army. Equipment 8 PZL P.11c and 2 PZL P.11a fighter airplanes. Air crew commander of the unit: kpt. pil. Władysław Szczęśniewski deputy commander: por.pil.Władysław Goettel Pilots: # ppor.pil.Jan Dzwonek # ppror.pil.Antoni Chabroszewski # ppor.pil. Tadeusz Koc # ppor.pil.Kazimierz Rębalski # ppor.pil.Marian Trzebiński # pchor.pil.Wiesław Choms # pchor.pil.Edward Kramarski # pchor.pil.Andrzej Malarowski # pchor.pil.Piotr Ruszel # plut.pil.Marian Domagała # plut.pil.Franciszek Prętkiewicz # kpr.pil.Feliks Gmur # kpr.pil.Antoni Seredyn # st.szer.pil.Karol Sumara # st.szer.pil.Stanisław W ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Polish Air Force
The Polish Air Force ( pl, Siły Powietrzne, , Air Forces) is the aerial warfare branch of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as ''Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej'' (). In 2014 it consisted of roughly 16,425 military personnel and about 475 aircraft, distributed among ten bases throughout Poland. The Polish Air Force can trace its origins to the second half of 1917 and was officially established in the months following the end of World War I in 1918. During the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany in 1939, 70% of its aircraft were destroyed. Most pilots, after the Soviet invasion of Poland on September 17, escaped via Romania and Hungary to continue fighting throughout World War II in allied air forces, first in France, then in Britain, and later also the Soviet Union. History Origins Military aviation in Poland started even before the officially recognised date of regaining independence (11 November 1918). The very first independent units of th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Łódź Army
Łódź Army ( pl, Armia Łódź) was one of the Polish armies that took part in the Invasion of Poland of 1939. It was officially created on 23 March 1939 with the task of filling the gap between Poznań Army in the north and Kraków Army in the south. Commanded by Juliusz Rómmel, it consisted of five infantry divisions and two cavalry brigades with support from the air force. Tasks The army's task was to fill the gap between Army Poznań in the north (defending Greater Poland under general Tadeusz Kutrzeba) and Army Kraków in the south (operating in Silesia and Lesser Poland under general Antoni Szylling), prevent enemy attacks in the direction of Łódź and Piotrków Trybunalski and if possible, advance towards Sieradz. It was also to cover the mobilization of a reserve Prusy Army behind the Polish lines. Because of that, the main strategic purpose of the army was to gain time and offer delaying actions and harsh resistance on the expected main German offensive line (Czę ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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161 Esk Mysl
Year 161 ( CLXI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Caesar and Aurelius (or, less frequently, year 914 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 161 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years. Events By place Roman Empire * March 7 – Emperor Antoninus Pius dies, and is succeeded by Marcus Aurelius, who shares imperial power with Lucius Verus, although Marcus retains the title Pontifex Maximus. * Marcus Aurelius, a Spaniard like Trajan and Hadrian, is a stoical disciple of Epictetus, and an energetic man of action. He pursues the policy of his predecessor and maintains good relations with the Senate. As a legislator, he endeavors to create new principles of morality and humanity, particularly favoring women and slaves. * Aurelius ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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PZL P
PZL (''Państwowe Zakłady Lotnicze'' - State Aviation Works) was the main Polish aerospace manufacturer of the interwar period, and a brand of their aircraft. Based in Warsaw between 1928 and 1939, PZL introduced a variety of well-regarded aircraft, most notably the PZL P.11 fighter, the PZL.23 Karaś light bomber, and the PZL.37 Łoś medium bomber. In the post-war era, aerospace factories in Poland were initially run under the name WSK (Transport Equipment Manufacturing Plant), but returned to adopt PZL acronym in late 1950s. This was used as a common aircraft brand and later as a part of names of several Polish state-owned aerospace manufacturers referring to PZL traditions, and belonging to the ''Zjednoczenie Przemysłu Lotniczego i Silnikowego PZL'' - PZL Aircraft and Engine Industry Union. Among the better-known products during this period is the PZL TS-11 Iskra jet trainer and PZL-104 Wilga STOL utility aircraft. After the fall of communism in Poland in 1989, these ma ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tadeusz Kotz
Tadeusz Kotz (9 August 1913 – 3 June 2008) was a Polish pilot and fighter ace of World War II. He was awarded several decorations, including Poland's Virtuti Militari, four times Cross of Valour and the British Distinguished Flying Cross. After the war he published his memoirs. Biography Tadeusz Kotz was born in Grabanów as Tadeusz Koc on 9 August 1913 to a family of wealthy farmers. After school he entered the cadet flying school in Dęblin. Later, he served in the Polish Air Force as a fighter pilot. During the Invasion of Poland in 1939, Kotz fought with the Polish 161st Fighter Escadrille air unit of Łódź Army. He shot down his first enemy Messerschmitt on 2 September 1939, and also shared in the destruction of a Junkers Ju-86 while piloting a PZL P.11 airplane. On 16 September he shot down a Soviet reconnaissance bomber Polikarpov R-5. After Poland was defeated, Kotz was ordered to evacuate to Romania along with other pilots. He escaped via Yugoslavia and Greec ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Polish Air Force Order Of Battle In 1939
The following is the order of battle of the Polish Air Force prior to the outbreak of the Polish Defensive War of 1939. During the mobilization waves of March and August of that year, all peace-time units were deployed to airfields throughout the country and attached to respective commands of Air Force, Naval Air Service and squadrons supporting each of the Polish armies. In the last stages of the air campaign, whole units coordinated all actions in the fight against the invaders. The Polish fighters claimed 134 air victories, including 7 enemy aeroplanes shot down by Polish PZL P.7a fighters, 125 by PZL P.11 fighters of all types (mostly P.11c, several P.11a), and 2 downed by PZL P.11g. In addition, the Polish air forces had a number of PZL.37 Łoś and PZL.23 Karaś bombers, as well as a number of non-combat planes used for reconnaissance, observation, communications, army cooperation and transport. Among the latter were Lublin R-XIII, LWS-3 Mewa, RWD-8, RWD-14 Czapla, PWS-10 a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |