Squadron 303 (book)
Encyclopedia
Squadron 303 written by Polish author Arkady Fiedler
became his most famous and popular book, selling over 1.5 million copies. Written in 1942, the book is about the legendary No. 303 ("Kościuszko") Polish Squadron (Polish: 303 Dywizjon Myśliwski "Warszawski im. Tadeusza Kościuszki") of Polish Air Force
fighter pilots who flew with Great Britain's
Royal Air Force
(R.A.F.) during the Battle of Britain
. No. 303 ("Kościuszko") Polish Squadron continued the traditions of the earlier Polish 7th Air Escadrille
or "Kościuszko Squadron", as it was better known, which was one of the most active units of the Polish Air Force
during the Polish-Soviet War
of 1919-1921. Formed in late 1918, Polish 7th Air Escadrille was re-formed in late 1919 from American volunteers, initially commanded by Cedric Fauntleroy
, then by Merian Cooper (who originally recruited the American pilots for this unit).
Author Arkady Fiedler was a bestselling travel writer researching in Tahiti
when World War II
began. He made his way back to Europe
and joined the Polish Army in France
after Poland had fallen to the Germans. Fiedler managed to get to England
with the other Polish forces after the fall of France, where he saw all the attention that the Polish pilots of 303 Squadron were getting from the British press—they were the highest-scoring Allied fighter squadron in the Battle of Britain
. Fiedler recognized that their story would make a great book.
He undertook to chronicle the extraordinary achievements of No. 303 (Polish) Squadron during the Battle of Britain with the blessing of Polish Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief Władysław Sikorski.
Arkady Fiedler began writing 303 Squadron “live” during the Battle of Britain, spending time with the Polish pilots and ground crew of No. 303 Squadron at their base at RAF Northolt
, West London
, England. He wrote the book in Polish
under the title Dywizjon 303. It was translated into English and published in Great Britain in 1942 (where it went through several printings), and in the United States
in 1943.
A clandestine edition of Dywizjon 303 was parachuted into German-occupied Poland in 1943. Copies duplicated by the Polish Underground were secretly passed from person to person. The account of the successes of their fighter pilots, fighting in distant lands for freedom, boosted morale in the beleaguered country. The book inspired soldier-poet Czesław ‘Czechura’ Kałkusiński, serving with a forest partisan unit of the AK (Armia Krajowa
) in the Częstochowa
region, to write a poem entitled “303 Squadron” which was set to music by his fellow soldier Henryk ‘Garda’ Fajt, and soon found its way to London via the Polish Underground where it was played over the BBC
and heard by Polish airmen serving in Great Britain.
Dywizjon 303 became a classic in Poland. It is mandatory reading for children in grammar school, and has gone through numerous Polish editions.
In connection with the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain in 2010, a new English translation was commissioned by publisher Aquila Polonica
at the request of Fiedler’s son. This is the first new English-language edition of Dywizjon 303 since 1942, and for the first time in English identifies the pilots by their true names. This new edition contains nearly 200 historic photos, maps and other illustrations and supplemental material to set the story in historical context. Winner of the 2011 Benjamin Franklin Gold Award for History and Silver Award for Interior Design (1-2 Colour).
In "Flying" magazine, Lane Wallace noted, "Typically, fighter pilot stories are written either by individual surviving pilots or historians after the fact. But the pilots of 303 Squadron had an advantage when it came to recording their adventures accurately as they unfolded: Like Magellan
, they had a professional writer assigned to the squadron and tasked with making sure their story wasn't mistold or forgotten."
Writing in The Atlantic about forgotten pieces of World War II history, such as the story of 303 Squadron, Sanjay Saigal asked, "shouldn't cultural literacy include knowing about Polish heroism in the defense of Britain?"
United States
Canada
Poland
Argentina
Germany
Audio Book
Poland
Arkady Fiedler
Arkady Fiedler was a Polish writer, journalist and adventurer.He studied philosophy and natural science at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków and later in Poznań and the University of Leipzig...
became his most famous and popular book, selling over 1.5 million copies. Written in 1942, the book is about the legendary No. 303 ("Kościuszko") Polish Squadron (Polish: 303 Dywizjon Myśliwski "Warszawski im. Tadeusza Kościuszki") of Polish Air Force
Polish Air Force
The Polish Air Force is the military Air Force wing of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej...
fighter pilots who flew with Great Britain's
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
(R.A.F.) during the Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...
. No. 303 ("Kościuszko") Polish Squadron continued the traditions of the earlier Polish 7th Air Escadrille
Polish 7th Air Escadrille
Polish 7th Air Escadrille , better known as the Kościuszko Squadron, was one of the units of the Polish Air Force during the Polish-Soviet War of 1919-1921. Formed in late 1918, it was re-formed in late 1919 from US volunteers...
or "Kościuszko Squadron", as it was better known, which was one of the most active units of the Polish Air Force
Polish Air Force
The Polish Air Force is the military Air Force wing of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej...
during the Polish-Soviet War
Polish-Soviet War
The Polish–Soviet War was an armed conflict between Soviet Russia and Soviet Ukraine and the Second Polish Republic and the Ukrainian People's Republic—four states in post–World War I Europe...
of 1919-1921. Formed in late 1918, Polish 7th Air Escadrille was re-formed in late 1919 from American volunteers, initially commanded by Cedric Fauntleroy
Cedric Fauntleroy
Cedric Fauntleroy was an American pilot who in 1919 volunteered to serve in the Polish Air Force during the Polish-Bolshevik War. Fauntleroy was an air combat veteran of the Western Front in World War I...
, then by Merian Cooper (who originally recruited the American pilots for this unit).
Author Arkady Fiedler was a bestselling travel writer researching in Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
when World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
began. He made his way back to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and joined the Polish Army in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
after Poland had fallen to the Germans. Fiedler managed to get to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
with the other Polish forces after the fall of France, where he saw all the attention that the Polish pilots of 303 Squadron were getting from the British press—they were the highest-scoring Allied fighter squadron in the Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...
. Fiedler recognized that their story would make a great book.
He undertook to chronicle the extraordinary achievements of No. 303 (Polish) Squadron during the Battle of Britain with the blessing of Polish Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief Władysław Sikorski.
Arkady Fiedler began writing 303 Squadron “live” during the Battle of Britain, spending time with the Polish pilots and ground crew of No. 303 Squadron at their base at RAF Northolt
RAF Northolt
RAF Northolt is a Royal Air Force station situated in South Ruislip, east by northeast of Uxbridge in the London Borough of Hillingdon, West London. Approximately north of London Heathrow Airport, the station also handles a large number of private civil flights...
, West London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England. He wrote the book in Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
under the title Dywizjon 303. It was translated into English and published in Great Britain in 1942 (where it went through several printings), and in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1943.
A clandestine edition of Dywizjon 303 was parachuted into German-occupied Poland in 1943. Copies duplicated by the Polish Underground were secretly passed from person to person. The account of the successes of their fighter pilots, fighting in distant lands for freedom, boosted morale in the beleaguered country. The book inspired soldier-poet Czesław ‘Czechura’ Kałkusiński, serving with a forest partisan unit of the AK (Armia Krajowa
Armia Krajowa
The Armia Krajowa , or Home Army, was the dominant Polish resistance movement in World War II German-occupied Poland. It was formed in February 1942 from the Związek Walki Zbrojnej . Over the next two years, it absorbed most other Polish underground forces...
) in the Częstochowa
Czestochowa
Częstochowa is a city in south Poland on the Warta River with 240,027 inhabitants . It has been situated in the Silesian Voivodeship since 1999, and was previously the capital of Częstochowa Voivodeship...
region, to write a poem entitled “303 Squadron” which was set to music by his fellow soldier Henryk ‘Garda’ Fajt, and soon found its way to London via the Polish Underground where it was played over the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and heard by Polish airmen serving in Great Britain.
Dywizjon 303 became a classic in Poland. It is mandatory reading for children in grammar school, and has gone through numerous Polish editions.
In connection with the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain in 2010, a new English translation was commissioned by publisher Aquila Polonica
Aquila Polonica
Aquila Polonica is an independent publishing house based in Los Angeles and the U.K. and founded by Terry A. Tegnazian and Stefan Mucha in 2005. The company specializes in eyewitness accounts, in English, of Poland in World War II....
at the request of Fiedler’s son. This is the first new English-language edition of Dywizjon 303 since 1942, and for the first time in English identifies the pilots by their true names. This new edition contains nearly 200 historic photos, maps and other illustrations and supplemental material to set the story in historical context. Winner of the 2011 Benjamin Franklin Gold Award for History and Silver Award for Interior Design (1-2 Colour).
In "Flying" magazine, Lane Wallace noted, "Typically, fighter pilot stories are written either by individual surviving pilots or historians after the fact. But the pilots of 303 Squadron had an advantage when it came to recording their adventures accurately as they unfolded: Like Magellan
Magellan
Magellan may refer to:*Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese explorer who led part of the first expedition around the world*Magellan , a progressive rock band*Magellan , a forerunner of the Excite web portal...
, they had a professional writer assigned to the squadron and tasked with making sure their story wasn't mistold or forgotten."
Writing in The Atlantic about forgotten pieces of World War II history, such as the story of 303 Squadron, Sanjay Saigal asked, "shouldn't cultural literacy include knowing about Polish heroism in the defense of Britain?"
Publishing History
Great Britain- Dywizjon 303
Publisher: M.I. Kolin, London, 1942. - Squadron 303 : The story of the Polish Fighter Squadron with the R.A.F.
Publisher: Peter Davies. London, 1942, 1943, 1945. - Squadron 303 : The story of the Polish Fighter Squadron with the R.A.F.
Publisher: Letchworth Printers. Letchworth, 1944, 1945.
United States
- Squadron 303 : the story of the Polish Fighter Squadron with the R.A.F.
Publisher: Roy Publishers. New York, 1943. - 303 Squadron: The Legendary Battle of Britain Fighter Squadron.
Publisher: Aquila Polonica. Los Angeles, California, 2010.
Canada
- Groupe 303
Publisher: Les Éditions Variétés, Montréal, 1944. - Dywizjon 303
Publisher: Impr. Saint-Joseph. Montréal, 1945.
Poland
- Dywizjon 303
Publisher: Wydawnictwo Oficyny Polskiej. Warsaw, 1943. - Dywizjon 303
Publisher: Towarzystwo Wydawnicze Załoga. Warsaw, 1943. - Dywizjon 303
Publisher: Oficyna Polska. Warsaw, 1943. - Dywizjon 303
Publisher: Wydawnictwo Ruchu Miecz i Pług. Warsaw, 1943. - Dywizjon 303
Publisher: Nakł. “Chrobrego szlaku”. Kielce, 1944. - Dywizjon 303
Publisher: Czytelnik. Kraków, 1946. - Dywizjon 303
Publisher: ISKRY. Warsaw, 1956, 1957, 1957, 1958, 1960. - Dywizjon 303
Publisher: Wydawnictwo Poznańskie. Poznań. 1965, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1978, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1989, 1990. - Dywizjon 303
Publisher: Siedmioróg. Wrocław, 1993, 1996. - Dywizjon 303
Publisher: Wydawnictwo “Bernardinum” Sp. z.o.o. Pelplin, 2009.
Argentina
- Dywizjon 303
Publisher: Osadnik. Pasadas, 1945.
Germany
- Staffel 303: Die polnischen Jagdflieger in der Luftschlacht um England.
Publisher: Staffel-303-verlag. Bochum, 2010.
Audio Book
Poland
- Dywizjon 303
Narrated by Tomasz Marzecki. Publisher: Storybox.