Oath of Allegiance
It had been sworn by twenty eight newly commissioned F/Os at the Hranice Military Academy eighty years ago on the battle of Zborov anniversary.
Only some of them left their Motherland to wage war against Hitler abroad. Four met their deaths. Two KIA and two lost their lives in a crash.
Having taken the silk F/O Otakar Korec flying a Dewoitine 520 fighter belonging to the French No I/3 unit was shot dead by a pilot of a Messerschmitt 109 nr Amiens on June 5,1940. A member of the Czechoslovak No 313 Sqn F/Lt Stanislav Fejfar was downed and killed over Northern France on May 17, 1942. F/Os Jindrich Bartos and Joseph Kloboucnik, who had served with Nos 312 and 68 Sqns respectively, met their deaths in a crash. The former on on Feb 13,1941 the latter on Oct 21 of the same year.
WWII was survived by ten of them. .For example by a pioneer of Cz Air Force´s Night Fighting Vlastimil Vesely or Frantisek Fajtl and Joseph Hanus. Fajtl authored more than a dozen books on the Cz airmen in both Western and Eastern fronts. Otakar Korec and Jindrich Bartos were mentioned by him in his ´Reminiscing Fallen Comrades-in-arms´ Book Fejfar used to make notes till his fateful op.This ´Fighter Pilot´s Notebook´ was published in 1970. Vlastimil Vesely´s wartime notes were gathered by his nephew into a ˇTowards stars and Clouds´ Book. A ´Darkness Bird of Prey´ one was dedicated to Joseph Hanus. Comparing these newly commisioned F/Os most often are seen pictures of Frantisek Fajtl in the ´Wings of Victory´ Éxhibition on this website. They were taken not only during his serving with the Royal Air Force. He also commanded the Czechoslovak No 1 Fighter Wing during the Slovakian Uprising in 1944 and in Poland in 1945. The last picture of him was taken in Prague.
Not only the words of the Oath HERE