Tadeusz Sawicz

Tadeusz Władysław Sawicz

Sawicz (foreground) in 1941
Born (1914-02-13)13 February 1914
Warsaw, Poland
Died 19 October 2011(2011-10-19) (aged 97)
Toronto, Canada
Allegiance  Poland,
Allied Powers
Service/branch Polish Air Force
French Air Force
Royal Air Force
US Army Air Forces
Years of service 1934–1947
Rank Wing Commander,
Brigadier General (Hon)
Unit 111th Fighter Escadrille
114th Fighter Escadrille
Groupe de Chasse III/10
No. 303 Squadron
No. 316 Squadron
56th Fighter Group
Commands held No. 315 Squadron
No. 131 Wing
No. 133 Wing
Battles/wars

World War II

Tadeusz Władysław Sawicz (13 February 1914 – 19 October 2011) was a Polish World War II fighter pilot. He served in the Polish Air Force, and after the fall of Poland, he served in the Polish and allied units in France and United Kingdom. He was the commander of several air units, including the No. 315 Polish Fighter Squadron, 1st Polish Fighter Wing, 3rd Polish Fighter Wing, 131st (Polish) Fighter Wing and 133rd Fighter Wing. He participated in the Battle of Britain and was ranked as the 82nd highest scoring Polish fighter pilot of the war.

As well as receiving Poland's highest military decoration, the Virtuti Militari, he was awarded a British Distinguished Flying Cross, an American Distinguished Flying Cross and the Dutch equivalent, the Airman's Cross or Vliegerkruis. In 2006 Sawicz was appointed honorary brigadier-general in the Polish Air Force.

After the war he emigrated to Canada. At his death he was believed to have been the last surviving Polish pilot to have fought in the Battle of Britain.

Biography

In Poland and France

Sawicz was born on 13 February 1914 in Warsaw. In 1934 he joined the Polish Army in the Second Polish Republic, as an officer and in 1934 began training in the air force. In August 1936 he received the rank of podporucznik and joined the 111th Fighter Escadrille. In 1937 he was transferred to the 114th Fighter Escadrille.[1]

During the Polish September Campaign in September 1939 he served (from 5 September) as the deputy commander of the 114th Escadrille, which together with several other air units was a part of the Pursuit Brigade.[2][3] He claimed a half-share in damaging a German Messerschmitt Bf 109 on the first day of the war, while flying a PZL P.11c.[2][3] Over the next week he was reported to have shot down two Dorniers Do 17 bombers, damaging two more.[2] On 14 September he was assigned a courier mission,[2][3] delivering messages to General Juliusz Rómmel, and Marshal Edward Rydz-Śmigły, flying into the encircled pocket at Młynów. After the Soviet invasion of Poland on 17 September, the Polish government decided to evacuate the country and ordered the remaining airforce to evacuate as well.[3] Via Romania, Yugoslavia and Italy Sawicz entered France where he was assigned to the French Air Force (see also Polish Army in France).[3] After training in Lyon, on 1 June 1940 he was assigned to Groupe de Chasse III/10 stationed in Deauville.[2][3]

In Great Britain

After the fall of France, like many other Polish pilots he did not surrender and took a Bloch MB.152 across the Mediterranean to Algeria, from where he went to Casablanca in Morocco and via Gibraltar to Great Britain, arriving on 17 July.[2][3] After four months training at No.5 OTU at Aston Down, he joined the newly recreated Polish Air Force in the Great Britain.[1]

In Great Britain he was assigned on 20 October to No. 303 Polish Fighter Squadron during the Battle of Britain.[2][3] On 22 February 1941 he was transferred to No. 316 Polish Fighter Squadron.[2][3] On 9 April he shot down a Heinkel He 111 bomber, which was reported as the new squadron's first confirmed kill.[2][3] In July he was awarded the first Cross of Valour and promoted.[2] From 9 November 1941 he served as commander of the Escadrille A of the No. 316 Squadron.[4]

From June 1942 he served as a flight instructor with No. 58 OTU.[3] On 25 September 1942 he became commander of No. 315 Polish Fighter Squadron.[2][3] During his time with 315 Squadron he damaged a Focke Wulf 190 on 4 April.[2][3] On 16 April 1943 he became the deputy commander of the 1st Polish Fighter Wing, and was awarded the Poland's highest military decoration, the Virtuti Militari.[2] From June 1943 he was a liaison officer with No. 12 Group RAF.[3] From 18 October 1943 he served in a training capacity at Rednal. On 3 April 1944 he was attached to the headquarters of the 9th Air Force of the USAAF as liaison officer.[2]

He was then assigned to the 56th Fighter Group, under Polish-American fighter ace Francis Gabreski where he formed a Polish section.[2][3] For his time with the 56th Group, he was awarded the US Air Medal and Distinguished Flying Cross.[2][3] On 14 June 1944 he was given the command of the 3rd Polish Fighter Wing, and on 10 October 1944, became commander of the 131st (Polish) Fighter Wing.[2][3] Soon after taking the command, he was injured in a crash.[2] On 16 July 1945 he returned to duty as the commander of the Polish 3rd Wing. Later he commanded the 133rd Fighter Wing.[2][3]

During the war he had claimed 3 confirmed victories and 3 and a half "damaged".[1] He is ranked (on the Bajan List) as the 82nd highest scoring Polish fighter pilot of the war.[5]

After the war

He was demobilized in January 1947[2] with the rank of major. He chose not to return to Poland, where the new communist government was hostile towards those who had served in the Polish Armed Forces in the West.[3][6] In 1957 he emigrated to Canada, where he worked in the air industry,[2] living in Montreal and Etobicoke.[1]

In 2006 Sawicz was appointed honorary brigadier-general by then-Polish president Lech Kaczyński.[2] At his death on 19 October 2011 he was believed to have been the last surviving Polish pilot to have fought in the Battle of Britain.[2][6]

Decorations

Virtuti Militari[2] Silver Cross[3]
Cross of Valour[2] – four awards
Air Force Medal (for War 1939–1945)
Polish Armed Forces in the West Military Action Cross
Distinguished Flying Cross – United Kingdom
Distinguished Flying Cross[3] – United States

 Air Medal[2] with oak leaf cluster – United States
Airman's Cross[2] – Netherlands

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Those Other Eagles; Shores (Grub Street 2004), page 522
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 Air Force Obituaries: Wing Commander Tadeusz Sawicz The Telegraph, 26 October 2011
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 "Brytyjski hołd dla Tadeusza Sawicza, ostatniego polskiego asa bitwy o Anglię – Polska". Polskatimes.pl. Retrieved 29 October 2011.
  4. ↑ "Tadeusz Sawicz". Polishairforce.pl. Retrieved 2012-05-15.
  5. ↑ "Lista Bajana". Polishairforce.pl. Retrieved 2012-05-15.
  6. 1 2 Last Pole to fight in Battle of Britain dies thenews.pl, 26 October 2011
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