Poles remembered in Battle of Britain tribute
PR dla Zagranicy
Nick Hodge
07.07.2014 16:32
Poland's ambassador to the United Kingdom Witold Sobkow took part in ceremonies on Sunday marking the annual Battle of Britain Memorial Day.
Photo: Polish Embassy in the United Kingdom
The event took place in the vicinity of the National Memorial to the Few in Capel-le-Ferne, Kent, recalling the 2936 airmen who defended Britain during the summer and autumn of 1940.
The monument takes its name from Winston Churchill's wartime statement about the Royal Air Force (RAF) that “never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.”
Photo: Polish Embassy in the UK
Poles provided 145 of the 595 non-British pilots that took part in the clash, and they proved highly effective in combat.
303 squadron in particular, which was chiefly composed of Poles, had the highest hit rate of all RAF squadrons in the battle.
Sunday's Memorial Day included a Hurricane and Spitfire flypast, as well as floral tributes that were laid at the Christopher Foxley-Norris Memorial Wall.
544 RAF aircrew were killed in the battle, including 35 Poles. (nh)