He fought in the Polish-bolshevik war, the September campaign, the French run of 1940 and the conflict of England. On July 10, 1904, a colonel was born. Zdzisław Krasnodębski “King”, commander of the legendary hunting division 303, Polish formation defending England against German invasion. Today, the traditions of this unit are inherited by the 23rd Tactical Aviation Base.
"Our occupation is to prevent the bombers from reaching their target, so full of gas and attack. The desire for triumph is so large that 1 forgets everything and only sees the enemy" – Colonel Zdzisław Krasnodębski "King", Squadron Commander 303 described in memories of the conflict of England.
The officer was born in Wola Osowińska, Podlasie on 10 July 1904. He joined the army as a 16-year-old, volunteering to fight during the Polish-Bolshevik War. – He was assigned to the 201st Infantry Regiment with which he participated in the German operation – says Dr. Maciej Tomczyk, a historian who deals with the past of Polish aviation. After the war Krasnodębski graduated from Cadet Corps No. 1 in Lviv and the Officer Aviation School in Grudziądz (today Military Academy in Dęblin).
He held pilot courses in Dęblin and in the 2nd Air Regiment in Kraków and as a pilot he went to 111 Mystic Squadron in Warsaw, and from 1935 he commanded this formation. As a large pilot, he entered the delegation for Polish hunting aviation shows in Bucharest, and participated in the Central Aviation Competitions in Grudziądz. From 1937, the officer commanded the 3rd Fighter Squadron and at its head fought in September 1939 to defend Warsaw.
On September 3, a P.11c fighter piloted by him during the conflict of Rembertow was hit by an enemy. Colonel Krasnodębski saved himself by skydiving, returning to the squadron and via Romania he made his way to France. There in March 1940 he headed the Polish squadron subordinate to the French 55th Fighter Squadron and fought against Germany. “In mid-June, after the surrender of France, he reached Britain, where he was ordered to organize a Polish hunting squadron,” says the historian.
Among Polish pilots, mainly from 111 Fighter Squadron, Colonel Krasnodębski formed 303 Hunting Squadron stationed at RAF base in Northolt, London. "At my intervention, the English authorities agreed to give the Squadron the name Tadeusz Kościuszko and to paint Kosciuszko badge on aircraft hulls", Colonel Krasnodębski recalled. It was about the emblem of the 7th Fighter Squadron. Tadeusz Kościuszko fighting in the Polish-bolshevik war, i.e. the image of the Kraków cap and 2 crossed scythes against the background of white-red belts.
Squadron 303 entered the fight for England on August 31. During the conflict of Britain, his pilots were celebrated for their effectiveness and courage. Colonel Krasnodębski made six successful combat flights over England in the first fewer days of September. Unfortunately, his good streak ended on September 6.
That day, Krasnodębski took off for a combat flight over Kent County. During his pursuit of the enemy, he was attacked by the pilot of the German Messerschmitt 109. Hurricane Polaka was hit and the fuel tank became on fire. "Suddenly the glass of my machine's clocks was sprinkled, the fuel tank burst with bullets, the burning gasoline poured out of it and filled the full compartment with fire. I unzip the seat belts, open the cab, open the door and jump out," the colonel described.
The pilot jumped out of a burning fighter with a parachute and went to the infirmary with dense and extended burns on his legs, hands and face. He underwent long-term treatment and respective plastic surgeries and appointed Lieutenant Witold Urbanowicz as his successor in command of Division 303. On October 5, 1940, during the recovery, Colonel Krasnodębski visited the infirmary General Władysław Sikorski, Chief Leader, and for valor he decorated the officer with the Silver Cross of the Virtuti Military War Order.
After the treatment was completed in the summertime of 1941, the pilot was sent with the Polish Military Mission to Canada and the USA. There, he conducted verbunk among Polish volunteers to the Polish Armed Forces. He returned to the United Kingdom in March 1943 and commanded ground personnel until the end of the war, including the head of the Polish Pilot School in Newton close Nottingham, was commandant of the fighter station in Heston, commander of the 131th Field Airport in Northolt and co-organized 131th Hunting Wing.
After planet War II, the officer decided to stay on emigration, where Wanda's wife, a associate of the Warsaw Uprising, joined him. They first moved to South Africa and then Canada, where Colonel Krasnodębski worked as an inspector at an airline company and operated in Kombatant organizations. He died on 3 August 1980 in Toronto. At the initiative of the Association of Veterans of the Polish Army in America, the ashes of the Krasnodębski State were brought to Poland and finished on 14 May 2014 at the Military Cemetery in Powązki in Warsaw.
Today the traditions of the 303rd Division inherits the 23rd Tactical Aviation Base in Minsk Mazowiecki, and the engine shot down over England by Hurricane Colonel Krasnodębski can be seen at the Air Force Museum in Dęblin.
