Jan Paweł Falkowski (26 June 191227 July 2001) 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 ...

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 9 confirmed kills.

Biography

Falkowski was born in Pohulanka near

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

in 1912. In 1934 he entered to

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 (geography), 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 together have over 100,000 inhabitan ...

.Krzystek 2012, p. 174. He was promoted

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

(

podporucznik ''Podporuchik'' ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, потпоручник, potporučnik, , , , , ) is the most junior officer in some Slavic armed forces, and is placed below the rank of lieutenant, typically corresponding to rank of second lieutenant in English ...

) in October 1936. Then he began his career in

Toruń Toruń is a city on the Vistula River in north-central Poland and a World Heritage Sites of Poland, UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its population was 196,935 as of December 2021. Previously, it was the capital of the Toruń Voivodeship (1975–199 ...

.Pawlak 2009, p. 153. In 1938 he was sent to Dęblin as instructor. During the

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 ...

, on 3 September 1939, he flew a

PWS-26 The PWS-26 was a Polish advanced training aircraft, used from 1937 in aviation, 1937 to 1939 in aviation, 1939 by the Polish Air Force, constructed in the PWS (aircraft manufacturer), PWS (''Podlaska Wytwórnia Samolotów'' - Podlasie Aircraft Fac ...

, three German planes attacked him. Falkowski reduced the flight almost to the ground and using aircraft maneuverability caused that one German fighter crashed into the ground, and the other interrupted the attack and turned back, most likely due to the small amount of fuel. 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 ...

he crossed the border with

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 ...

, then he came to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

where he became instructor at Polish School in

Lyon–Bron Airport Lyon–Bron Airport (; ) is an airport located in Bron, east of Lyon, both communes of the Metropolis of Lyon in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. Lyon–Bron is one of two airports serving the city, alongside the larger and mor ...

.Pawlak 2009, p. 154. On 31 May 1940 he took command of section no. 10.Belcarz 2012, p. 8. When

capitulated, he arrived in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

on 27 June 1940. He was assigned to No. 32 Squadron RAF. He shot down his first plane on 16 January 1941.Sikora 2014, p. 225. During the battle, his plane was badly damaged, Falkowski had to jump with a parachute and broke his leg on landing. After treatment he was sent to the No. 315 Polish Fighter Squadron. In August 1941 he downed three

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 ...

over France. In September he scored two victories. On 22 September he became commander of "A" Flight. He also served in No. 316 Polish Fighter Squadron and

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 ...

. On 30 January 1945 he was named commander of the 3rd Polish Fighter Wing. During one flight over the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, on 9 March 1945, he was hit by flak, due to the failure of the aircraft, Falkowski had to save himself by jumping with a parachute once again. He was fired upon by the Germans. One of the bullets wounded him in the leg. He was taken

POW POW is "prisoner of war", a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. POW or pow may also refer to: Music * P.O.W (Bullet for My Valentine song), "P.O.W" (Bull ...

.Zieliński 1994, p. 27. On 9 May 1945 he came back to England. After the demobilization in 1947, he settled in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and had a farm 20 miles away from

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

. In the 1960s he wrote an autobiographic book, ''Z wiatrem w twarz'' (With the wind in my face), edited in Poland in 1990.Zieliński 2005, p. 45. Jan Falkowski died on 27 July 2001 in

Peterborough Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...

, Canada.Pawlak 2009, p. 154.

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 (Poland) The Cross of Valour () is a Polish military decoration. It was introduced by the Council of National Defense on 11 August 1920. It is awarded to an individual who "has demonstrated deeds of valour and courage on the field of battle." It may be aw ...

, four times

Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) The Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers, and since 1993 to other ranks, of the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force and other British Armed Forces, services, and formerly to officers of other ...

References

Bibliography

* Bartłomiej Belcarz: ''Grupa Myśliwska Montpellier 1940''. Sandomierz: Wydawnictwo Stratus, 2012 * 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. 174. * Jerzy Pawlak: ''Absolwenci Szkoły Orląt: 1925-1939''. Warszawa: Retro-Art, 2009, p. 153. * Piotr Sikora: ''Asy polskiego lotnictwa''. Warszawa: Oficyna Wydawnicza Alma-Press. 2014, pp. 223–228. * Józef Zieliński: ''Asy polskiego lotnictwa''. Warszawa: Agencja lotnicza ALTAIR, 1994, p. 27. ISBN 83862172. * Józef Zieliński: ''Lotnicy polscy w Bitwie o Wielką Brytanię''. Warszawa: Oficyna Wydawnicza MH, 2005, pp. 44–45.

Biography

Awards

References

Bibliography

Further reading