MORE PHOTOS FROM SLAGILLE

 

 

Pages of entries in the Church Records at Slagille, Denmark

added later by the parish priest

 

 

    Memorial Garden to those killed at Slagille on BB309

 

 

       Memorial stone to those killed on Halifax BB309

 

 

     The present Polish graves at Slagille

 

These are more pictures provided from his own collection and website, through the courtesy of Soren Flensted, to whom I am extremely grateful.

ANTONI MENTLAK - KNOWN COMBAT MISSIONS

Virtuti Militari awarded to 301 Squadron retrospectively (in 1966) for the Special Duties Missions to Warsaw

Antoni Mentlak - Known Combat Missions

F/O Jan Miszewski – first pilot

F/O Stanislaw Machej – second pilot

F/O Gebik – navigator

F/Sgt Janusz Antoniewicz – wireless operator

F/Sgt Marian Koc – air gunner

F/Sgt Pacut – despatcher

Sgt Antoni Mentlak – flight engineer

Mission 01    20/21 Feb 43       Poland

From RAF Tempsford on board Halifax DT726 NF-H.    They took off on Operation File at 18.52 and were over the primary target point 154 in Poland at 00.20; the secondary point 103 was not necessary as the crew clearly saw the recognition signal of 8 red lights and 8 white lights, one of which was flashing. They responded with the recognition code letter Z and dropped the 6 containers of supplies and four men – they had instructions to drop the men only (in a safe place) if they failed to get the correct signal at either point 154 or 103. The aircraft landed safely at RAF Middleton St George, County Durham – a long way from their home base – at 07.29 after a successful mission.

W/O Bolesław Hułas - first pilot

F/S Rzewuski Mieczysław - second pilot

F/L Malinowski Mieczysław - navigator

F/S Krzeczewski Eugeniusz – radio operator

F/S Miniakowski Stefan - front gunner

Sgt Mentlak Antoni – mechanic/flight engineer

F/S Dubiel Józef - rear gunner

Mission 02    16/17 June 43       France

Mission 03    17/18 June 43       France

F/O Sancewicz Zbigniew - 1st pilot

F/O Goszczyński Michał - 2nd pilot

F/O Krywda Władysław - navigator

Sgt Łuksza Tadeusz – radio operator

Sgt Mentlak Antoni – mechanic/flight engineer

The air gunners who usually flew in the crew were Sgt Andrzej Godecki and F/Lt Eligiusz Zaleski but sometimes there were different airmen taking their place on the flights.

Mission 04    15/16 July 43       France

Mission 05    22/23 July 43       France

Mission 06    24/25 July 43       France

Mission 07     08/09 Aug 43       Denmark

Mission 08     12/13 Aug 43       France

Mission 09     13/14 Aug 43       France

Mission 10     16/17 Aug 43       France

Mission 11     18/19 Aug 43       France

Mission 12     20/21 Aug 43       France

Mission 13     23/24 Aug 43       France

Mission 14     09/10 Sep 43       Poland 

Including F/Lt Zaleski and Sgt Godecki from RAF Tempsford on board Halifax JD-319 'A' Operation Flat 2 to Lichtarz 101 The pilot on this mission was F/O Zbigniew Sancewicz.

Mission 15     16/17 Sep 43       Poland

From RAF Tempsford on board Halifax BB378 ‘D’ Operation Neon 1 to Gurnek 103

Mission 16      21/21Sep 43       Poland

From RAF Tempsford on board Halifax LW276 ‘E’ Operation Neon 5 to Lustro 201

Mission 17     13/14 Oct 43       France

Mission 18     15/16 Oct 43       Poland

From RAF Tempsford on board Halifax JD171 ‘P’ Operation Cottage 55 to Zyto 1 801

Mission 19     18/19 Oct 43       Poland

From RAF Tempsford on board Halifax JD319 ‘A’ Operation Oxygen 1 to Chochla 507 The pilot on this mission was F/O Zbigniew Sancewicz.

After 1586 Flight was formed, Sgt Antoni Mentlak and his crew flew from RAF Tempsford (Overnight 6/7 November 43) via Gibraltar to RAF Sidi Amor near Tunis (The first place where the Flight was stationed after the movement, firstly to Tunisia and later to Brindisi in Southern Italy).

Mission 20    06/07 Nov 43       Tunisia

RAF Tempsford to RAF Sidi Amor, Tunisia via RAF Gibraltar classed as a combat mission/operational flight because their course took them over enemy territory.

Mission 21    15/16 Dec 43       Poland

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy on board Halifax JD319 ‘A’ on Operation Ohio 1 to Rybitwa-1 16 The pilot on this mission was F/O Zbigniew Sancewicz.

Mission 22    18/19 Dec 43       Poland

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy on board Halifax JD319 ‘A’ on Operation Ohio 2 to Tukan-1 12 The pilot on this mission was F/O Zbigniew Sancewicz.

Mission 23    13/14 Feb 44       Italy

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy to ...............in Northern Italy

Mission 24    17/18 Feb 44       Italy

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy

Mission 25    22 Feb 44            Jugoslavia

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy

Mission 26    24/25 Feb 44       Poland

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy on board Halifax JN956 ‘E’ on Operation Weller 5 to Wieszak 311 and with agents on board

Mission 27    03/04 Mar 44       Greece

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy

Mission 28    07/08 Mar 44       Greece

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy

Mission 29    17/18 Mar 44       Czechoslovakia

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy. This may have been the mission mentioned in Bienecki’s book, Polski Zaloga over Europe in which they dropped supplies to the Jugoslav partisans en route and were attacked by an enemy fighter but escaped by hiding in clouds

Mission 30    03/04 Apr 44       Poland

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy on board Halifax JP177 ‘P’ on Operation ................ to Zamek

Mission 31    06/07 Apr 44       Greece

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy

Mission 32    09/10 Apr 44       Poland

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy on board Halifax JP177 ‘P’ on Operation Weller 3 to Kaczka 127 with agents on board

Mission 33    12/13 Apr 44       Poland

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy on board Halifax JP177 ‘P’ on Operation Weller 15 to Lichtarz 223 with agents on board

Mission 34    15/16 April 44      Poland

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy on board Halifax JP177 ‘P’ on Operation ...................to Paszkot 239

Mission 35    16/17 Apr 44       Poland

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy on board Halifax JP236 ‘A’ on Operation Weller 15 to Obraz 318 with agents on board

Mission 36    25/26 Apr 44       Italy

In Polish Special Duties Flight 1586 flying from RAF Campo Casale, near Brindisi, Italy

There are five more missions, details of which I have not been able to find. If you can help please contact me on neville.bougourd@gmail.com and also if you have any more information on the missions listed above.

Special thanks to Frances Gates and Piotr Hodyra for the incredible amount of information they have supplied to make this chart possible.

ANTONI MENTLAK

He was born on 29th January 1915 on a farm at Cendrowice, about 20 miles south of Warsaw, to Michal Mentlak and Franciszka Mentlak nee Bianczyk. After his education was completed, he enlisted as a non-commissioned officer cadet – on 14th October 1932 – where he remained until 18th June 1935 when he was posted to 213 Squadron of 1st Air Regiment as a regular airman; from 1st April 1938 he served as a flight engineer. He stayed with them throughout the September Campaign from 1st to 17th September 1939.

On the orders of Wing Commander Jozef Werakso, he was evacuated to Romania as part of the four man crew of a PZL 37 Los (Moose) bomber, serial number 72c. This was a Polish designed and built twin engine medium bomber. The crew were interned immediately on arrival in Bucarest. Two days later, on 19th September 1939, he was admitted to a military hospital where he stayed until 30th September when he was informed that they were going to amputate one of his toes. He suffered problems with this foot for the rest of his life – but kept his toe!

He made his way to Constanta, a port on the Black Sea, and stayed there until 8th October 1939 when he attempted to cross the frontier en route for France. He was detained at the border and taken to an internment camp at Turnu Severin and held there until 21st October 1939. The following day he arrived at Balczyk (Balchic) near the Danube Estuary on the Black Sea where he remained for two weeks until 5th November 1939 when he boarded a ship for Malta. He remained in Malta until 16th November 1939, when he sailed for France with the intention of rejoining the Polish Air Force.

He arrived at Marseilles on 19th November 1939 and re-enlisted in the Polish Air Force under French command at the air base in Lyon-Bron. Like many other Poles, he was unhappy with the living conditions there and the inactivity and was among the first to leave for England – arriving there on 5th January 1940. He enlisted at RAF Eastchurch in Kent – this was before it became a front line fighter base and was under frequent attack from the Luftwaffe. He spent a few weeks here on the routine induction – learning English, learning RAF regulations etc.

Antoni Mentlak (right) with unknown PAF colleague

On 26th March 1940 he was transferred to RAF Hucknall on the outskirts of Nottingham, which was the Polish training centre for both flying crew and ground crew where he would complete his training and become familiar with British aircraft – which were inherently different from their Polish equivalents in that many of them had retractable undercarriage and totally different layout of controls. On completion of his training he was posted to RAF Bramcote near Nuneaton, Warwickshire, on 28th June 1940. Here he served as a fitter, flight mechanic before becoming an established member (flight engineer) of the aircrew in the fledgling Polish Air Force in exile as part of the newly established 300 Squadron.

Later he transferred to 301 Squadron and served with them until they were disbanded at which time (30th November 1942) he was posted to 138 Squadron, based at RAF Tempsford in Bedfordshire. This has been described as the RAF’s most secret air base in WW2 and 138 Squadron was the work horse for the clandestine missions of the Special Operations Executive. Speaking of RAF Tempsford, Adolf Hitler said: “....find this vipers nest and obliterate it!” – but they never did. Between 16th March and 9th June 1943 he was seconded to No 4 School of Technical Training at St Athan for unknown reasons except possibly to improve his skills as a flight engineer.

Whilst at RAF Tempsford, he took a short break from hostilities and married Hilda Benson on 14th April 1942.

Antoni Mentlak flew at least nineteen missions from this base; he flew twelve to France, one to Denmark and six to Poland. All of this was before he transferred to the newly forming 1586 Flight on 6th November 1943. On the evening of that day he flew from RAF Tempsford, via RAF Gibraltar, to RAF Sidi Amor in Tunisia; this flight counted as a combat mission because they had to fly over territory to reach their final destination – facing the twin menaces of anti-aircraft fire and night fighters. After a few weeks to acclimatise and maintain their equipment, they flew on to RAF Campo Casale near Brindisi in Southern Italy – this was to be their new operational base from which he flew at least sixteen missions. These were to Czechoslovakia (1), Greece (3), Italy (3), Jugoslavia (1) and Poland (8) The latter involved flying over enemy territory for almost the entire route and there was a disproportionate ratio of losses associated with these long and dangerous flights. The main purpose of them was to supply partisan forces with weapons and materials and to drop agents into enemy territory; I have positively identified at least four flights carrying agents.

Halifax Bomber JD319 (GR-A) in which Antoni flew several missions

During the rest of his flying career, he took part in a further five missions and accumulated a total of 310 hours and 55 minutes flying time and 41 combat sorties – well above the minimum requirement for a tour of duty with a Special Operations crew – and even above the limit for a normal bomber crew. In this time he accumulated considerable decorations – the Silver Cross of the Virtuti Militari (5th Class), the Cross of Valour and two bars and the Polish Air Force Medal and two bars as well as his Royal Air Force campaign medals.

From 6th May 1944 he was attached to the No 3 Base Personnel Depot at Naples and , eleven days later, on 17th May 1944, he arrived back at the Polish Depot in Blackpool. On 11th August 1944 he was reassigned to the No 4 School of Technical Training at St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales where he remained until his transfer to 304 Squadron on 19th September 1945, which was, by this time, part of Transport Command. His duties there were flying missions, mainly to Italy and Greece on unarmed Vickers Warwicks and Handley Page Halifaxes. On the outward journeys they were ferrying supplies and on the return journeys they usually ferried returning Prisoners of War and other passengers. Although the war was over, these were still dangerous missions as the aircraft were tired and war battered converted bombers.

He was honourably discharged from the Air Force on 7th January 1947 and, the next day, reported to the Polish Resettlement Corps (technically the Army) for a two year term during which he was re-trained as a plumber to help him integrate into civilian life. He was finally demobilised on 8th January 1949.

After the war, he settled in Leeds and worked as a plumber. He was actively involved with the local Polish community and the Polish Club. He married on a further two occasions and fathered a total of eight children. He always attended the Polish reunions in Blackpool each September but in the later years he came back depressed as the numbers attending steadily declined due to the deaths of his former comrades in arms. He returned to Poland only once, in the 1980s and died of a heart attack, at home, on 17th October 1987 aged 72. He was buried in Killingbeck Cemetery, Leeds.

Personal photos copyright Kristopher Mentlak
Halifax photo copyright holder unknown