Skalski Against all Odds provides a gripping and detailed account of the career of General Stanislaw Skalski, VM & bar, KW & 3bars, DSO, DFC & 2bars, the leading Polish fighter ace. Skalski gallantly served from the first day of the Second World War, becoming the first ace of the conflict, and continued his service through the Battle of Britain, Channel offensive, Tunisian & Italian campaigns, and Normandy landings. He finished the war on staff positions. Returning to communist Poland, he was duly arrested on charges of spying on behalf of Great Britain and sentenced to death. He was not executed, and after spending eight years in prison, he rejoined service, to fly MiG-15 jet fighters. He continued his service at non-flying positions, and following retirement, he was involved in popularizing aviation as well as in politics. The story is based on a number of documents, many of them published here for the first time and in most cases previously unavailable to the English reader.
Franciszek Grabowski is a researcher of Polish Aviation, with a number of articles published. He puts his emphasis on the wartime and post-war activities of the Polish airmen, including various covert and intelligence actions.
List of Polish Ranks and Positions; Introduction; 1 The War Begins; 2 To England; 3 Summer of the Fighters; 4 Over the Channel; 5 Wing Leader; 6 Return to Poland; 7 Back in the Air Force; 8 Retirement and Beyond; Appendix I: Victories; Appendix II: Promotions; Appendix III: Awards and Commendations; Appendix IV: Skalski's Commandments; Endnotes; Bibliography.
A brilliant account of an extraordinary character and a daring fighter pilot; Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 3 October 2017. As a professional researcher, you would expect Grabowski to have done an excellent job at locating every possible source of information about Skalski, and you would be right. This book is crammed with detail about Skalski's flying career first with the Polish Air Force during the first weeks of WW2, later with the RAF where he created the legend of an extremely aggressive and courageous flyer in RAF squadrons and later Polish Air Force squadrons attached to the RAF, including his creation and leadership of the famous 'Skalski's Circus' (or Polish Fighting Team) in the Western Desert. You get insights into the somewhat prickly character of this astonishing man, but only later when Grabowski details the suffering Skalski suffered at the hands of the Communist government after his return to Poland, do we get to appreciate the depths of Skalski's personal courage in the face of years of imprisonment and torture. How anyone could pass through this and emerge sufficiently intact to rejoin the Polish Air Force and serve in high office is sensitively described by Grabowski. We at aircrewremembered.com have a special affinity for the Poles who served in the RAF and have been greatly looking forward to this book, which is long overdue in honouring a great man, a great pilot, and a loyal servant of Poland.
