Zdzisław Karol Henneberg VM, DFC, KZ***, CdeG (11 May 1911 – 12 April 1941) was a Polish airman who flew with the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

during the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain () 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 defended the United Kingdom (UK) against large-scale attacks by Nazi Germany's air force ...

and a flying ace of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Early life and career

Henneberg was born on 11 May 1914 in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

. He graduated from the VIIIth Polish Air Force and before the war was an instructor at the advanced flight training school. He was stationed as an instructor in Dęblin when the

German invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...

commenced, and volunteered for combat flying. After the USSR's invasion of Poland he fled to Romania and then to France, where he trained on the Morane-Saulnier M.S.406.

Battle of France

During the German invasion of France Henneberg was put in command of a MB.152 fighter group. He was stationed at

Châteauroux Châteauroux ( ; ; ) is the capital city of the French department of Indre, central France and the second-largest town in the province of Berry, after Bourges. Its residents are called ''Castelroussins'' () in French. Climate Châteauroux te ...

, which was abandoned by its French personnel on 17 June 1940, upon which Henneberg was evacuated to England, reaching it via

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

with three other pilots. This was the only Polish evacuation from France to England by plane.

Battle of Britain

On 2 August 1940 Henneberg joined No. 303 Squadron RAF, under the command of Squadron Leader Kellett. He was shot down on 31 August during his first operational mission. On 2 September 1940 Henneberg was credited with one damaged enemy aircraft. Five days later in a battle over Essex Henneberg claimed one confirmed and one probable

Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a monoplane fighter aircraft that was designed and initially produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (BFW). Together with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the Bf 109 formed the backbone of the ...

. On 15 September 1940 (later known as Battle of Britain Day), Henneberg was attacked by a number of Bf 109s. He defended himself and destroyed one Do 17. Henneberg temporarily took command of No. 303 Squadron RAF from

Witold Urbanowicz Witold Urbanowicz (30 March 1908 – 17 August 1996) was a Polish fighter ace of the Second World War. According to the official record, Witold Urbanowicz was the second highest-scoring Polish fighter ace, with 17 confirmed wartime kills and 1 p ...

on 21 September 1940. On 27 September he was credited with a

and on 5 October he shot down a Bf 110 from the

Erprobungsgruppe 210 ''Schnellkampfgeschwader'' 210 (SKG 210) was a Luftwaffe fast-bomber wing during the Second World War. The unit was created in April 1941 and absorbed by the Zerstörergeschwader 1 on 4 January 1942. Operational history SKG 210 had its origi ...

. In a ceremony on 15 December he was awarded a DFC for 8 victories in the Battle of Britain by the Air Officer Commanding

Fighter Command RAF Fighter Command was one of the commands of the Royal Air Force. It was formed in 1936 to allow more specialised control of fighter aircraft. It operated throughout the Second World War, winning fame during the Battle of Britain in 1940. The ...

Air Chief Marshal Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many Commonwealth of Nations, countries that have historical British i ...

Sholto Douglas.

Later war & death

Henneberg temporarily relinquished command of No. 303 Squadron RAF on 7 November 1940 to Adam Kowalczyk, before taking over permanently on 20 February 1941. On 12 April 1941 Henneberg led six

Supermarine Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and other Allies of World War II, Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. It was the only British fighter produced conti ...

s in an attack on airfields near

Le Touquet Le Touquet-Paris-Plage (, Picard language, Picard: ''Ech Toutchet-Paris-Plache''), commonly referred to as Le Touquet (), is a Communes of France, commune near Étaples, in the Pas-de-Calais Departments of France, department, northern France. ...

and Crecy. During the attack Henneberg's plane was damaged by anti-aircraft fire. He managed to fly his plane out of occupied France, but had to ditch it in the English Channel 20 miles from

Dungeness Dungeness (, ) is a headland on the coast of Kent, England, formed largely of a shingle beach in the form of a cuspate foreland. It shelters a large area of low-lying land, Romney Marsh. Dungeness spans Dungeness Nuclear Power Station, the ham ...

.Polish Airforc
Henneberg Biography
(Polish) Retrieved February 2015 Zbigniew Kustrzyński reported seeing Henneberg in the water and reported his position, but a two-day search could not find him and his body was never found. He is remembered on the

Battle of Britain Monument in London The Battle of Britain Monument in London is a sculpture on the Victoria Embankment, overlooking the River Thames, which commemorates the individuals who took part in the Battle of Britain during the World War II, Second World War. It was unvei ...

, the Polish Memorial to Aircrew in

and the

Polish War Memorial The Polish Air Force Memorial (informally Polish War Memorial) is a war memorial in West London, England in memory of airmen from Poland who served in the Royal Air Force as part of the Polish contribution to World War II. Over 18,000 men and ...

near

RAF Northolt Royal Air Force Northolt or more simply RAF Northolt is a Royal Air Force List of Royal Air Force stations, station in South Ruislip, from Uxbridge in the London Borough of Hillingdon, western Greater London, England, approximately north of ...

In popular culture

Zdzisław Henneberg was portrayed by Christopher Jaciow in the 2018 film '' Hurricane: 303 Squadron''.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Henneberg, Zdzislaw 1911 births 1940s missing person cases 1941 deaths Aerial disappearances of military personnel in action Military personnel from Warsaw Missing aviators Polish aviators Missing in action of World War II Missing person cases in Europe People lost at sea Polish Royal Air Force pilots of World War II Polish Air Force officers Polish military personnel killed in World War II Polish World War II pilots Royal Air Force officers Royal Air Force personnel killed in World War II The Few