Battle of Britain Czech "field made "pilots badge to 310 Squadron DUXFORD

[arrestingu]

picked this up today for £3 !!
sadly this full size field made pilots badge isn't named , though it is engraved, 310 squadron Czech at Duxford 1940.

hope you like !!
steve

[lebus12]

Of course, I like, now in Prague they have a monument.

[big ned]

Czechoslovak pilots of No. 310 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF and their British flight commanders grouped in front of Hawker Hurricane Mark I, P3143 'NN-D', at Duxford, Cambridgeshire.
7th September 1940
They are (standing, left to right); P/O Svatopluk Janouch (d.12/4/66), Sgt.Josef Vopalecky (d.7/5/95), Sgt.Raimund Puda (d.17/3/2002), Sgt.Karel Seda (d.15/6/92), Sgt.Bohumír Fürst (d.2/1/78) and Sgt.Rudolf Zima (d.11/6/72): (sitting, left to right); P/O Vilem Göth (KIA 25/10/40), F/Lt Jaroslav Maly (KIA 25/10/40, F/Lt Gordon L Sinclair (d.2005), F/O John E Boulton (KIA 9/9/40), F/Lt Jerrard Jefferies (KIA 15/4/43) (who commanded the Squadron in January-June 1941, having changed his name by deed poll to Latimer), P/O Stanislav Zimprich (d.11/6/42), Sgt.Jan Kaucky (d.23/8/70), F/Lt Frantisek Rypl (d.10/1/74), P/O Emil Fechtner (d.29/10/40) and P/O Vaclav Bergman (d.31/12/2002.
Hurricane P3143 'NN-D' - was later to be abandoned near Ely, Cambridgeshire on 16/10/40 after the aircraft began to emit white smoke from the engine and crashed. 787659 Sgt Jan Chalupa (k) baled out but his parachute failed to open and he was killed.
After the Sudetenland crisis and the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia in March 1939, many young Czech Air Force pilots made their way via France to Britain. Many Czech pilots had fought in the short and bitter Battle of France thus gaining some form of combat experience. However, their skill was seen to the full in the 'Battle of Britain'.
At the start of the battle, the Czechs were distributed throughout already established Fighter Command squadrons. However, they were given their own squadron – 310. In total 84 Czechs fought in the Battle of Britain and they gained a reputation for aggressive aerial combat. In late August, Squadron Leader G D M Blackwood commanded 310 Squadron. During an attack on August 26th, Blackwood attacked a Dornier. The Dornier fired at his Hurricane and set alight one of his fuel tanks. Blackwood had to bale out. A Czech pilot followed up his attack. Emil Fechtner attacked a Bf.110 and it broke off with smoke pouring out from its engines. Blackwood wrote about the men in his squadron:
“The Czechs really did a fine job despite their aggressive attitude. I think that their only problem was that as soon as they saw an enemy that would make for a possible target, nothing else mattered.”
One Czech pilot – Josef Frantisek – was the third most successful Fighter Command pilot during the Battle of Britain with 17 ‘kills’ – one of just a few ‘Triple Aces’.

(Photo source - IWM CH 1299 - Royal Air Force official photographer Mr S A Devon )

Courtesy of WW2 Colourised Photos.

https://www.facebook.com/WW2-Colouri...WSFEED&fref=nf

Regards, Ned.