Jakub Bargiełowski
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Jakub Bargiełowski (1921-2010) was a Polish
fighter ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ...
of the
Polish Air Force The Polish Air Force () is the aerial warfare Military branch, 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 26,000 military personnel an ...
in
World War II 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 ...
with 5 confirmed kills.


Biography

Bargiełowski was born in
Garbów Garbów is a village in Lublin County, Lublin Voivodeship, in eastern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Garbów. It lies approximately north-west of the regional capital Lublin. The village lies on the K ...
near Lublin. In 1936 he entered the Air Force Non-Commissioned Officer's School for minors in
Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz is a city in northern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Kuyavia. Straddling the confluence of the Vistula River and its bank (geography), left-bank tributary, the Brda (river), Brda, the strategic location of Byd ...
, then he was sent to the High Aviation School in Ułęż.Kubit 2019, p. 459. After the
Soviet invasion of Poland The Soviet invasion of Poland was a military conflict by the Soviet Union without a formal declaration of war. On 17 September 1939, the Soviet Union invaded Second Polish Republic, Poland from the east, 16 days after Nazi Germany invaded Polan ...
the school began the evacuation to
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
, unfortunately on 18 September Bargiełowski was captured by Red Army and sent to Yelenovskiye Rudniki on Black Sea, where he worked at a stone pit until May 1940. He was deported to Siberia where he spent 14 months working in
taiga Taiga or tayga ( ; , ), also known as boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces, and larches. The taiga, or boreal forest, is the world's largest land biome. In North A ...
. Due to starvation he suffered from blindness, dysentery, and scorbutic paralysis. After the Sikorski–Mayski agreement, Bargiełowski was released on 4 September 1941 and arrived in
Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
by sea on 13 November 1941.Krzystek 2012, p. 81. He started training on 20 January 1943 on after a long treatment. On 28 September 1943 he was posted to No. 61 OTU for fighter pilot's operational training. Finally on 24 January 1944 he was assigned to the No. 315 Polish Fighter Squadron.Sikora 2014, p. 377. On 12 June 1944 he scored his first double victory shooting down two Fw 190. On 18 August he downed two Fw 190 and damaged two others. He scored his last victory on 11 December. He also shot down three flying bombs V-1. From 2 May 1945 he served as instructor in the No. 61 OTU as instructor, and on 24 July he returned to No. 315. On 17 November he was transferred 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 during the Second ...
where he served until it was disbanded on 11 December 1946.Sikora 2014, p. 378. In May 1948 he emigrated to Australia, setting up a business in jewelry.Zieliński 1994, p. 64. Jakub Bargiełowski died on 21 February 2010 in Sydney.


Aerial victory credits

* 2 Fw 190 – 12 June 1944 *
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 ...
– 24 June 1944 (damaged) * 2 Fw 190 – 18 August 1944 (and two others damaged) * Fw 190 – 11 December 1944


Awards

Virtuti Militari The War Order of Virtuti Militari (Latin: ''"For Military Virtue"'', ) is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war. It was established in 1792 by the last King of Poland Stanislaus II of Poland, ...
, Silver Cross
Cross of Valour, three times
Cross of Merit with Swords The Cross of Merit with Swords () is a Polish military award established October 19, 1942, by the Polish Government in Exile. Criteria The Cross of Merit with Swords is awarded for deeds of bravery and valor during time of war not connected with ...

Distinguished Flying Medal The Distinguished Flying Medal (DFM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the Royal Air Force and other British Armed Forces, and formerly to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for "exceptional val ...

Air Force Medal 1939-45 (''Medal Lotniczy'')
1939–1945 Star
Air Crew Europe Star
Defence Medal
War Medal 1939–1945 The War Medal 1939–1945 is a campaign medal which was instituted by the United Kingdom on 16 August 1945, for award to citizens of the British Commonwealth who had served full-time in the Armed Forces or the Merchant Navy for at least 28 days ...


References


Further reading

* * * * * Tadeusz Jerzy Krzystek, Anna Krzystek: ''Polskie Siły Powietrzne w Wielkiej Brytanii w latach 1940-1947 łącznie z Pomocniczą Lotniczą Służbą Kobiet (PLSK-WAAF)''. Sandomierz: Stratus, 2012, p. 81. * Janusz Kubit: ''Szkoła Podoficerów Lotnictwa dla Małoletnich, Krosno 1938-1939''. Krosno: Graffia - Agencja wydawniczo-fotograficzna, 2019 * Piotr Sikora: ''Asy polskiego lotnictwa''. Warszawa: Oficyna Wydawnicza Alma-Press. 2014, pp. 376-379. * Józef Zieliński: ''Asy polskiego lotnictwa''. Warszawa: Agencja lotnicza ALTAIR, 1994, p. 64. ISBN 83862172. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bargielowski, Jakub Polish World War II flying aces Recipients of the Silver Cross of the Virtuti Militari 2010 deaths 1921 births Polish prisoners of war World War II prisoners of war held by the Soviet Union Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Medal