Wacław Łapkowski (6 November 1913 in

Dyneburg Daugavpils (; russian: Двинск; ltg, Daugpiļs ; german: Dünaburg, ; pl, Dyneburg; see other names) is a state city in south-eastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city gets its name. The parts of the ...

– 2 July 1941 over the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

) was a major in 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 ...

and

fighter 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 ...

during

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 ...

, with 6 confirmed kills and one shared.

Biography

Łapkowski graduated from

Polish Air Force Academy The Polish Air Force Academy (Polish: ''Wyższa Szkoła Oficerska Sił Powietrznych'' (1994-2018); ''Lotnicza Akademia Wojskowa'' (since 2018)) is located in Dęblin, eastern Poland. Established in 1927 during the interwar period, the Polish Air ...

Dęblin Dęblin is a town at the confluence of Vistula and Wieprz rivers, in Lublin Voivodeship, Poland. Dęblin is the part of the agglomeration with adjacent towns of Ryki and Puławy, which altogether has over 100 000 inhabitants. The population of ...

in 1934. On 15 August 1934 he was named second lieutenant (''podporucznik'') and assigned to the

Polish 112th Fighter Escadrille The 112th Fighter Escadrille of the Polish Air Force (Polish: ''112. Eskadra Myśliwska'') was one of the fighter units of the Polish Army. History The Escadrille was created in 1919 by a merger of the earlier 18th Reconnaissance Escadrille and ...

. During the

Invasion of Poland 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 aft ...

, on 6 September 1939 he took command of his unit after Stefan Okrzeja died. On 9 September he shot down a

He 111 The Heinkel He 111 is a German airliner and bomber designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter at Heinkel Flugzeugwerke in 1934. Through development, it was described as a "wolf in sheep's clothing". Due to restrictions placed on Germany after th ...

. After the September Campaign he was evacuated to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

where he was posted to the Opulski section in Romorantin. After the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...

, Łapkowski arrived in the UK. On 3 August 1940, he was ordered to the

No. 303 Polish Fighter Squadron No. 303 Squadron RAF, also known as the 303rd "Tadeusz Kościuszko Warsaw" Fighter Squadron, was one of two Polish squadrons that fought during the Battle of Britain along with No. 302 Squadron, of 16 total Polish squadrons in the Royal Air ...

and took part in 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 ...

. On 5 September he downed a Ju 88 but his plane was damaged, Łapkowski wounded, jumped with a parachute. On 5 May 1941, he became commander of his squadron. On 2 July 1941, No. 303, engaged some 60 Bf 109s over Lille. Łapkowski was killed over the English Channel. His body washed up onshore. Łapkowski was buried in

Lombardsijde Lombardsijde, also Lombartzyde, is a district in the Belgian municipality of Middelkerke in West Flanders province, in northwestern Belgium near Nieuwpoort. Fighting occurred in and around Lombardsijde during World War I World War I (28 ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

Aerial victory credits

* 1/3 He 111 - 6 September 1939 * He 111 - 9 September 1939 * Ju 88 - 5 September 1940 * Bf 109 - 4 June 1941 (damaged) * Bf 109 - 18 June 1941 * 2 x Bf 109 - 22 June 1941 * Bf 109 - 24 June 1941

Awards

Virtuti Militari The War Order of Virtuti Militari (Latin: ''"For Military Virtue"'', pl, Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari) is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war. It was created in 1792 by Polish King Stan ...

, Silver Cross
POL Krzyż Walecznych (1940) 4r BAR

Cross of Valour (Poland), four times

Biography

Aerial victory credits

Awards

References

Further reading