Karol Pniak (26 January 1910 – 10 November 1980) was a Polish

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

of the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

. Originally a pilot for 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 ...

in the

September Campaign The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week after ...

of 1939, he later flew with No. 32 Squadron of the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

, during the Battle of Britain, where he was known by the nickname "Cognac." Karol Pniak claimed five victories in the Battle.

Pilot Officer Pilot officer (Plt Off officially in the RAF; in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly P/O in all services, and still often used in the RAF) is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countri ...

Pniak then served with 257 Squadron, and was involved in the dogfight with

Regia Aeronautica The Italian Royal Air Force (''Regia Aeronautica Italiana'') was the name of the air force of the Kingdom of Italy. It was established as a service independent of the Royal Italian Army from 1923 until 1946. In 1946, the monarchy was abolis ...

aircraft on 11 November 1940. He attacked one Fiat BR.20M bomber that began to smoke and burn and then turned onto its back before it dived into the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

10 miles east of

Harwich Harwich is a town in Essex, England, and one of the Haven ports on the North Sea coast. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the north-east, Ipswich to the north-west, Colchester to the south-west and Clacton-on- ...

after one man had baled out. He then attacked another, which glided in towards the coast, trailing smoke. Pniak then transferred to 306 Squadron, serving from November 1940 to November 1941. Two months at the

Air Fighting Development Unit The Air Fighting Development Unit (AFDU) was an air technical intelligence part of the Royal Air Force which developed tactics and tested captured enemy aircraft. It was based at Royal Air Force Stations Northolt, Duxford and Wittering. The AF ...

followed, before a return to 306 until January 1943. Pniak then served for five months in North Africa with the

Polish Fighting Team The Polish Fighting Team (PFT) ( pl, Polski Zespół Myśliwski), also known as "Skalski's Circus" ( pl, Cyrk Skalskiego), was a Polish unit which fought alongside the Commonwealth of Nations, British Commonwealth Desert Air Force in the North ...

. From September 1943 to November 1944 he was an instructor at No. 6 Operational Training Unit. From 29 November 1944 until 30 June 1945 he commanded No. 308 "Cracow" SquadronKról, Wacław (1976)
''Polskie dywizjony lotnicze w Wielkiej Brytanii, 1940-1945''.
Warsaw: Wydawn. Ministerstwa Obrony Narodowe. p. 305. After the war he was assigned to Headquarters, Polish Air Force in July 1945 and the Polish No. 131 Wing in November 1945. In August 1946 he returned to 308 Squadron as a supernumerary commander, receiving a Bar to his Polish Cross of Valour and Dutch

Airman's Cross The Airman's Cross ( nl, Vliegerkruis) is a military decoration of the Kingdom of the Netherlands created in 1941. The cross is awarded to members of the Dutch military who display initiative, courage, and perseverance against the enemy or during ...

. Pniak's final tally was 7 aircraft claimed destroyed, 2 shared destroyed, 2 "probables", 1 damaged, with 2 shared damaged. He left active service in 1947 and returned to Poland, where he died in

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

in 1980.

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External links

Polish
24 sierpnia 1940 r. - Karol Pniak

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pniak, Karol 1910 births 1980 deaths People from Jaworzno Polish World War II flying aces

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