Tadeusz Arentowicz (19 September 1909 – 8 July 1941) was a Polish fighter pilot and ace during the Second World War. He served as a flight lieutenant in the Royal Air Force in the No. 303 Polish Fighter Squadron (Polish: 303 Dywizjon Myśliwski "Warszawski im. Tadeusza Kościuszki"). He was B-group Flight Commander of the squadron.[1][2][3] A week after his final promotion, in 1941, he was on a mission escorting bombers when his plane was shot down by a German fighter near Dunkirk over the English Channel; he was never found.[4]
Military career
Tadeusz Arentowicz was a graduate of the Polish Air Force University in Dęblin (VII Promotion[5]). On 15 August 1933 he was promoted to the rank of second lieutenant in the Polish Air Force and was assigned to the 1st Air Regiment, stationed in Warsaw. He finished his training in Grudziądz and became an instructor at Ułęż airport near Dęblin in March 1939.[6] See No. 315 Polish Fighter Squadron.[clarification needed]
He participated in the September Campaign as a member of the Dęblin Group. He was evacuated to Romania from Wielick airport with other pilots. He waited to be picked up by the English at the Port of Constanța. The English transports never arrived to pick him and the others up. He managed to make his way to France and proceeded on to England.
He received his service number of P-0251 in 1941. After he was trained to use British equipment, he was assigned to the 303rd Polish Fighter Squadron.[7] He fulfilled the duties of squadron leader after the death of Zdzisław Henneberg and came to be the commander of the whole squadron on 3 July 1941.[8]
He joined 303 Squadron after the Battle of Britain. Little is known; but he was known by the nickname "Szpak" ('Starling' in English). Although he started as a flight lieutenant, death (Zdzisław Henneberg) and injury (Wacław Łapkowski) of his predecessors created a vacancy, and he was elevated to flight commander.[4]
On 3 March 1941, after the squadron had been upgraded to Spitfire Mk IIA planes, Arentowich led the attack on the German airfield at Le Touquet and another at Waben, and strafed an army transport depot at Breck-sur-Mer.[9]
On 16 April 1941, Arentowich had become the acting commanding officer. He presented a nomination of Waclaw Lapkowski (a second time) for the Cross of Valor.[10]
On 11 March 1941, ground control vectored him and two other pilots to attack an aircraft at 10,000 feet. This incident came to be called "A Little Mistake" in the squadron's log. Arentowicz was part of an attack by three Polish Spitfires on a friendly Armstrong Whitworth Whitley that was involved in paratroop training. Fortunately, and despite 100 hits, the plane survived and there were no injuries.[1]
He was given a prominent role during at least one ceremonial occasion.[11]
He was at the helm of Spitfire II PF 8385 IMPREGNABLE and damaged a Messerschmitt Bf 109 on 25 June 1941.[12]
On 8 July 1941, he flew the Supermarine Spitfire (designation P 8502) on a mission to escort bombers targeting the railway line and station in Lille. He was shot down by a German fighter, and the other pilots saw him crash in the sea somewhere near Dunkirk.[13] Polish forces searched for him but he was never found.[2][6][13]
Ken Delve, D-Day: The Air Battle, London: Arms & Armour Press, 1994, ISBN1-85409-227-8.
Fiedler, Arkady. Dywizjon 303 (in Polish). London: Peter Davies Ltd., 1942. (Translated as Squadron 303: The Polish Fighter Squadron with the R.A.F.. London: Peter Davies Ltd., 1942/New York: Roy Publishers, 1943. Reprint Kessinger Publishing, 2007.) New edition 303 Squadron: The Legendary Battle of Britain Fighter Squadron translated by Jarek Garliński. Los Angeles: Aquila Polonica, 2010 hard cover: ISBN978-1-60772-004-1 Trade paperback ISBN978-1-60772-005-8.
Fiedler, Arkady; Garlinski, Jarek (2010) [1942]. Squadron 303: The Polish Fighter Squadron with the R.A.F. or 303 Squadron: the legendary Battle of Britain fighter squadron (Print) (Reprint ed.). London, Los Angeles, California: Peter Davies Ltd., Kessinger Publishing, Aquila Polonica. ISBN978-1-60772-005-8.
Gretzyngier, Robert. Polskie Skrzydła 4: Hawker Hurricane, część 1 (in Polish). Sandomierz, Poland: Stratus, 2005. ISBN83-89450-37-2.
Halley, James J. The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1918–1988. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. ISBN0-85130-164-9.
Jefford, C.G. RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury, UK: Airlife Publishing, 2001. ISBN1-84037-141-2.
King, Richard; Siwek, Grzegorz (2012). Wydawnictwo RM (ed.). Dywizjon 303 walka i codzienność [303 squadron: fight and everyday life] (in Polish). Warsaw: Wydawnictwo RM. ISBN978-83-7243-979-6.
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