ALFRED LESZCZUK

Many people believe that only the pilots and other aircrew have stories worth reading when it comes to World War II but this is not the case as I hope you will find here.

Alfred Leszczuk was born on 7th February 1907 in Lwów, Poland (now Lviv, Ukraine) at the age of only 11, in October 1918, he took part in the Polish-Ukrainian War as a defender of Lwów in the volunteer Defence Battalion of Lwów and, as a result of this, he was awarded the Defenders of Lwów Cross.  After which he went back to his schooling and eventually trained as an electro-mechanic.

After his compulsory military service, he remained in the army where he received training as a radio mechanic from 1928 - 1929 with 61 Squadron in what is now the Ukraine.  On 28th March 1929 he was promoted and formally transferred to 61 Squadron of the 6th Air Regiment and put in the trusted position of Chief Electro-mechanic.  He retained this position until 15th September 1930 when he was released from military service and placed on the reserve list.

In 1934 he married Stanisława Dobrzańska in the Church of St Martin in Lwów and they continued to live in that city until he was recalled from the reserves for War service.

Wedding photograph of Alfred Leszczuk and Stanisława Dobrzańska, 8th September in Lwów

He was mobilised on 24th August 1939 and returned to the 6th Air Regiment, serving with 161 Fighter Squadron at Widzew-Ksawerów airfield in Lodz.  When the Russian army invaded from the rear, on 17th September 1939, he was ordered to retreat and head for the Romanian border where they were disarmed and interned.  On 1st October 1939 he was placed in the camp at Craiova where he remained until 18th December 1939 when he was moved to the camp at Targu Jiu.

Because the Romanian people sympathised with the Poles, life was fairly easy in the camps and there was a well organised plan whereby the Polish Embassy in Bucarest acquired large numbers of blank ID cards which were already stamped and signed by Romanian officials who were sympathetic or accepted relatively small bribes.  These genuine "fake" IDs were used to get the men out of the country.  All that needed to be added were photographs and false names.  The French authorities had already agreed to accept a contingent of the Polish armed forces to continue the fight from France.  There were many routes to France, overland via Jugoslavia and Northern Italy and by sea through the port of Balcic (now in Bulgaria) via the Mediterranean to Marseilles port.  It is likely that Alfred took this latter route  as he was photographed in Split, Jugoslavia in 1940.  These routes were not only assigned to the Polish Air Force but priority was given to airmen.

Alfred Leszczuk at Split, Jugoslavia waiting to continue his journey to France

Camp Carpiagne Military Base near Marseilles, France

He arrived at Camp Carpiagne, a military base south of Marseilles, on 2nd April 1940 and four days later he was assigned to the Air Force training centre at Lyon-Bron commanded by Colonel Stefan Pawlikowski, which was the main centre for the Polish Air Force.  Most Poles were very unhappy here as living conditions were poor, the food was inadequate and there was a desperate shortage of hot water for bathing.  Most Poles hated the place and the French attitudes because they were totally laid back and indifferent to the fighting.  The Poles were anxious to fight the Germans and were frustrated at the slow pace and indifference of the French.

It became necessary to evacuate the base as the Germans attacked France and most of the men were moved towards the Atlantic Coast and the small port of St Jean de Luz just North of the Spanish border. There was great hostility towards the Poles and many of the French wanted to hand them over to the Germans. This was just a few days after the evacuation from Dunkirk and few people realise that almost as many men were evacuated from the Mediterranean and Atlantic ports as from Dunkirk. 

But it was a bloody evacuation and many were killed as the evacuation fleet was harassed by U-Boats of the Kriegsmarine and aircraft of the Luftwaffe. So much so that Royal Navy ships sent to escort the evacuees had to be diverted to defend against the U-Boat threat. A lucky strike by Luftwaffe bombers resulted in a direct hit on the SS Lancastria which sunk very quickly with huge loss of life. Official estimates say 2,000 - 3,000 but eye witnesses put the number at 8,000 - 10,000 Soldiers waiting to board ships had to run the gauntlet of strafing and bombing before they could escape. 

On 24th June 1940 Alfred sailed on board the SS Arandora Star which was a British liner converted to a troopship which arrived in Liverpool on about 26th June 1940. On her very next journey she was torpedoed and sunk by the U47 west by North of Ireland. 805 people lost their lives - ironically most of them were Italian internees and German prisoners of war on their way to Canada on 2nd July 1940.

SS Arandora Star waiting at St Jean de Luz to evacuate the British, Polish and French forces

 

Alfred Leszczuk working on a Bolton Paul Defiant

 

Alfred would have been one of those who received the King's gift of 10 shillings (50p in today's money) which had considerable spending power in 1940.  Then, on 27th June 1940, he was sent by train to RAF Kirkham which was between Preston and Blackpool but was part of the Polish Blackpool Depot.  There he would learn English, the King's Regulations and the British way of doing things - as well as the usual square bashing and became part of the new Polish Air Force in exile - Service number 793819.  He was assigned to 307 Squadron "Lwów Eagle Owls" and posted to RAF Kirton in Lindsey in Lincolnshire on 23rd September 1940 which was a night fighter squadron.

Whilst with them he served at RAF Jurby on the Isle of Man from 7th November 1940 until 8th January 1941 when he was posted to RAF Squires Gate at Blackpool, Lancashire.  On 26th March 1941 he was posted to RAF Colerne at Bristol and from 26th April 1941 to RAF Exeter, Devon.

On 31st October 1941 he was transferred to 304 Squadron where he moved from servicing fighters to Bombers.  During his time with the Squadron he spent time learning the new technologies at No 11 School of Technical Training at Hereford and No 12 School of Technical Training at Melksham, Wiltshire. 

He first came to 304 Squadron at RAF Lindholme near Doncaster in Yorkshire and later moved to RAF Tiree in the Inner Hebrides, Scotland on 10th May 1942 and then to RAF Dale near Milfordhaven, Pembrokeshire, Wales on 13th June 1942.  Later he moved to nearby RAF Talbenny in Pembrokeshire on 3rd November 1942 and back to RAF Dale on 1st December 1942.  His next move was to RAF Docking in Norfolk on 2nd April 1943 then RAF Davidstow Moor near Camelford in Cornwall on 8th June 1943.  From there he went to RAF Predannack on 13th December 1943, also in Cornwall until his final move to RAF Chvenor near Barnstaple in Devon on 19th February 1944.  He served in some of the most isolated and beautiful parts of iBritain - unfortunately in some of the worst weather conditions.

The picture below is unusual because he is wearing a standard battledress blouse with the RAF eagle and the stripe of a lance corporal (he was a full corporal at the time) but no Poland shoulder flash.  I suspect he has borrowed this from a British mechanic just for the purpose of an official photograph.

Inspecting the front turret of a Wellington bomber at RAF Dale

Alfred is 4th from right in the front row of this 304 Squadron group

On 31st May 1944 the invasion of mainland Europe was imminent and experienced mechanics were desperately needed to service the aircraft of No 2 Tactical Air Force who were to follow the invasion fleet.  He had experience of servicing fighters and was transferred to 6317 Service Echelon which was responsible for looking after the aircraft of 317 Polish fighter squadron.  At the time the service echelon was still separated from the Squadron and it is unclear where it was actually based.

It becomes clearer from 1st August 1944 when the Service Echelon embarked for France and rejoined the Squadron the following day at the Advanced Landing Ground of Plumetot in Normandy.  This was not a pleasant place where they lived in tents and suffered alternate spells of mud and dust and they were also within range of the German artillery.

After this the moved to Londinieres, Normandy on 5th September 1944, Vendeville near Lille in Northern France on 10th September and Deurne near Antwerp, Belgium on 3rd October until they finally reached Sint Denijs-Westrem on 11th October.  They were still here on 1st January 1945 when they were hit by a sudden and massed attack by the Luftwaffe.  Fortunately 317 and two British squadrons

Devastation following a totally unexpected Luftwaffe attack on 1st January 1945.  Probably taken at Sint Denijs-Westrem, Belgium where he was serving at the time

Alfred sitting on the tail unit of a wrecked Focke-Wulf FW 190 Dora which was destroyed on the ground probably at Varrelbusch or Ahlhorn, Germany

On 13th January 1945 they moved on to Grimbergen, Belgium and by 9th March 1945 they had moved on to Gilze Rijen in the Netherlands.  By 13th April 1945 they had pushed as far as Nordhorn in Lower Saxony, Germany and by 30th April they had reached Varrelbusch where they remained as the War was almost over.  On 10th September they moved to Alhorn where he remained until 28th November 1946 when they embarked for England.  On 1st March 1946 he was promoted to sergeant.

In the latter days of his service on Continental Europe, he witnessed the carnage imposed on the Luftwaffe by the Allied air forces in one last push for victory  Here he is seen sitting on the tail unit of a Docke-Wulf 190 Dora - the long nose version which has clearly been destroyed on the ground - probably at Varrelbusch or Ahlhorn as he followed the fighters forward in the race to Berlin.

Alfred Leszczuk's medals from the Polish-Ukrainian War of 1918-1921 and WWII

He was disembarked on 30th November 1946 and rejoined the Squadron.  On 8th January 1947 he was moved to RAF Portreath in Cornwall but there is no clear reason for this.  He remained there until he was discharged to the Polish Resettlement Corps where he was no longer active Air Force personnel but it gave him a place to live and his normal pay until he was discharged and repatriated to Poland on 9th June 1947.  During his military career he added to his medal won as a boy in the Polish-Ukrainian War with a Polish Medal Lotniczy and four British campaign medals.  They were the 1939-1945 Star, the France and Germany Star, the Defence Medal and the War Medal.

 

During the course of the War his wife Stanisława remained in Lwów with their two young children - a three year old son and a 1 year old daughter.  After the War ended she was forcibly removed from their home city which was to become part of the Ukraine.  She had no idea where she was being sent.  The train journey lasted about two weeks and the final destination was Klodzko near the Czech border.

 

She managed to find Alfred through the Polish Red Cross.  He wanted to bring the family to England or to emigrate with them to South Africa but they decided that he should return to Poland, which he did in 1947.

His application showing his willingness to settle in South Africa

The ruling communist regime did not treat returning soldiers well.  They were distrusted because they were considered to be potential Western spies, they were spied on and punished by being kept out of the best jobs.  Communist repression replaced Nazi repression and, in Alfred's case, it was difficult to find a job. He wanted to work at the airport in Wrocław but that was not possible and in the end, he managed to get a job on the railways. 

Alfred with his wife, mother in law and two children taken in Poland after the War

Alfred's wife for many years ran a tailoring workshop on the ground floor of the tenement house where the family lived after the War.  This was not an ordinary establishment, because Stanisława ran cutting and sewing courses for women and students of the then Professional Schools Team.  She was much appreciated by the girls whom she taught.

After the war, when his health was failing, he was able to continue his passion for chess. He organized numerous tournaments and was actively involved in houses of culture. He died in 1966 and was buried according to his wishes in military uniform. For many years his grave remained undistinguished.   It was in no way possible to guess that a soldier of the Polish Armed Forces in the West, who devoted himself to the Fatherland, was buried there.

Recently, thanks to three of his grandchildren, a new and elegant monument was erected along with three plaques, because he, his wife and his mother in law are all buried there.   On Alfred's grave there is a photograph of him in uniform, the chessboard emblem of the Polish Air Force and the badges of the three squadrons in which he served - a very fitting and very impressive memorial. The tomb is located in the municipal cemetery at Kłodzko, Poland.