No. 300 Polish Bomber Squadron
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| No. 300 (Masovian) Squadron | |
|---|---|
 Badge of the 300 squadron |
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| Active | July 1, 1940 to February 2, 1947 |
| Allegiance | Polish Air Forces in Great Britain |
| Part of | RAF Bomber Command |
| Battle honours | Millennium Offensive, bombing raids on V-weapon sites, D-Day, crossing the Rhine, Battle of the Ruhr, bombing of Hamburg and Battle of Berlin. |
| Insignia | |
| Squadron code | BH |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Bomber | Fairey Battle, Vickers Wellington, Avro Lancaster |
No. 300 (Polish) "Land of Masovia" Bomber Squadron (Polish: 300 Dywizjon Bombowy "Ziemi Mazowieckiej")[1] was a Polish World War II bomber unit. It was fighting alongside the Royal Air Force and operated from airbases in the United Kingdom.
It was created on July 1, 1940 at RAF Bramcote, as a part of the Polish Air Forces in Great Britain. Between July 19, 1940 and May 8, 1945, the crews of the squadron flew 3,891 sorties and spent 20,264 hours in air.
Initially equipped with Fairey Battle light bombers, the squadron was equipped with Vickers Wellington medium bombers on November 16, 1940. The squadron used several versions, including Mark IC, IV, III and X. On March 5, 1944 the unit was re-equipped with Avro Lancaster bombers and continued to use that bomber until the end of World War II (versions Mk I and Mk III).
During the war, the squadron took part in most of the notable air offensives in Europe, including attacks on the German Navy preparing for Operation Seelöwe, Millennium Offensive, bombing raids on V-weapon sites]], D-Day, in support of crossing the Rhine, the Battle of the Ruhr, the bombing of Hamburg and the Battle of Berlin. The last mission was flown on May 8, 1945 against Adolf Hitler's residence in Berchtesgaden. The unit was disbanded on January 2, 1947, after the Allies withdrew their support for the Polish government.
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[edit] Details
| Period | Notes | |
|---|---|---|
| Commanding Officers | ||
| July 1, 1940 | Lt.Col. engineer pilot Wacław Makowski | with W/Cdr K. P. Lewis as a British supervisor |
| July 18, 1941 | Maj. pilot Stanisław Cwynar | |
| January 27, 1942 | Maj. pilot Romuald Suliński | |
| August 1, 1942 | Maj. pilot Władysław Dukszto | Since July 9 a c/o commander |
| October 31, 1942 | Maj. pilot Adam Kropiński | |
| May 4, 1943 | Maj. pilot Mieczysław Kucharski | |
| November 18, 1943 | Maj. pilot Kazimierz Kuzian | |
| January 18, 1944 | Maj. pilot Adam Kowalczyk | |
| April 1, 1944 | Maj. pilot Teofil Pożyczka | |
| February 2, 1945 | Maj. pilot Bolesław Jarkowski | |
| September 17, 1945 | Maj. pilot Romuald Suliński | |
| February 22, 1946 | Maj. pilot Bolesław Jarkowski | until the dissolution of the unit after the Allies withdrew their support for the Polish government. |
| Airfields | ||
| July 1, 1940 | Bramcote | |
| August 22, 1940 | Swinderby | |
| July 18, 1941 | Hemswell | |
| May 18, 1942 | Ingham | |
| January 31, 1943 | Hemswell | |
| June 22, 1943 | Ingham | |
| March 1, 1944 | Faldingworth | |
[edit] Notes
- ^ also "No 300 (Masovian) Squadron"
[edit] See also
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