Wellington W 5593 took off at 22.30 hrs. from Lindholm aerodrome to bomb Aachen.
They were attacked by a ME 110 night fighter over Belgium and shot down at Marche, Belgium.
Radio operator Kowalski Mieczysław and pilot Tomicki Stefan landed both by parachute and escaped with the help of the "Comet Line" to Gibraltar. On 4.1.1942 they arrived in Great Britain.
Tomicki Stefan crashed on 9.4.1943 with Wellington HE 148 near the Dutch coast. He has been missed since that time. See for more details: Tomicki Stefan
Frontgunner Rybak Wacław Piotr was killed in the aircraft.
Rear gunner Saferna Mieczyław Julian was found in the trees near the crashed plane with his parachute open but he was dead.
First pilot Ścibor Szcepan survived the crash and escaped to Brussel where he was arrested by the Germans. In March 1946 he returned to Poland where he joined the Polish Air Force at Dęblin. Later on he was falsely accused by the Polish Government from espionage and shoot on 7.8.1952.
Observer Sekunniek Jerzy Jan Stanisław jumped out of the plane without his parachute and was found dead about 100 meters from the crashed plane.
Source: Polish-Graves-nl-be
The crew of Wellington W5593 (Picture: Polish Squadron Remembered.com)
