“Never before in the field of human conflict have so many owed so much to so few.” June 1940. The British Expeditionary Force abandons Dunkirk on anything that floats. As the Germans march through Paris, Marshal Pétain signs another surrender in a wagon at Compiégne, but this time the French one. On the road to complete victory in Europe, Hitler faces only one serious opponent – the Kingdom of the British Isles. Marshal Göring, the second most powerful man in the Third Reich, promises Hitler that the Luftwaffe will secure victory in this battle. The systematic bombardment of English cities, wave after devastating wave, will surely break the resistance of the British. After all, the German Air Force and its aircraft are second to none. But the RAF pilots proved far more determined than the pompous, drug-addled Göring could ever have imagined. Yet had it been up to the human resources of the islanders, the RAF may have failed to resist the German onslaught. Fortunately, the ranks of the British Air Force were reinforced by numerous units of specialists from abroad. Former Czechoslovak pilots made up the fourth largest group in the RAF after the Poles, New Zealanders and Canadians. The first of the Czechoslovak squadrons was formed as early as July 1940, when the air battle for Britain had only been raging for a month. Its airmen, however, were no inexperienced rookies. Most of them had already been deployed in combat in Poland and France, and many of their journeys from the former Czechoslovakia would make for entire adventure novels. The pilots and aircrew often had to travel very circuitously across Europe to get to England at all, but just escaping from the Protectorate was worth the effort. Before the war broke out, Czechoslovak airmen first headed to Poland, but did not meet with understanding from the local government. Most of the soldiers resolved this by transferring to the French army, primarily to its Foreign Legion. After the defeat of Poland, the only escape route to the West for the remaining airmen was via Slovakia and Hungary. Here, too, they were in great danger. If captured, they would be handed over to the Germans, and it goes without saying what fate would await them. The only way to safety was to cross the border with what was then Yugoslavia, a former Czechoslovak ally. Here, the Czechoslovak consul lent a helping hand, arranging for them to be transported to Beirut and Lebanon, whence they continued on to Great Britain after the defeat of France. The stories of these pilots show their immense determination and mental resilience, while their incredible results in aerial combat and boundless bravery are still gratefully remembered by the British today. As Winston Churchill summed it up: “Never before in the field of human conflict have so many owed so much to so few.” Churchill The Czechoslovak pilots were among those who inscribed their names in gold in airborne combat over Great Britain, and they ranked among the ace fighter pilots in terms of kill numbers. The most successful fighter in France was Alois Vašátko with 16 kills, but František Peřina was not far behind with 15 kills. After the surrender of France on 21 June 1940 and the subsequent dramatic voyage across the channel, the Czechoslovak airmen landed in Great Britain. By July, the 310th fighter and 311th bomber squadrons of Czechoslovakia had formed, intervening in battle in September. Soon afterwards, a fighter squadron was assembled under the number 312, and finally the third 313th Czechoslovak fighter unit was formed within the RAF in 1941. Thanks to this, a Czechoslovak fighter wing could be created, composed exclusively of Czechoslovak units (No. 310, 312 and 313 squadrons). All the Czechoslovak airmen distinguished themselves in the battle for England. Several names worth remembering stand out among them. The true fighter pilot aces were Karel Kutellwascher with twenty kills, and Joseph Francis, operating in 303rd Polish squadron. The latter shot down 17 aircraft in three weeks, an incredible feat, and became the most successful non-British fighter of the conflict. Other airmen also achieved significant success and gave the Germans a good fight. Alois Vašátko scored 16 kills, František Peřina 15, Otto Smik 12, Miroslav Mansfeld 10, Josef Stehlík 10 and Václav Cukr 8 kills. According to army figures, Czechoslovak airmen in the RAF flew an incredible 43,500 operational sorties and shot down or damaged 365 enemy aircraft. The Czechoslovaks thus became a significant force for the enemy to reckon with. Nearly 2,500 Czechoslovak soldiers, 88 of them fighter pilots and more than 50 from the bomber squadron, passed through air units in the West in 1939-1945. War casualties were high: 531 dead and missing, 250 wounded and 52 captured soldiers. This, too, is part of the frightening balance sheet in the struggle for freedom. After the end of the war, the Western airmen returned to a free Czechoslovakia with hopes and dreams for a quiet, fulfilling life in peace. Unfortunately, their aspirations were torn apart by the communist coup in 1948, and the 1950s brought them enormous suffering. The heroes of the nation who fought in the struggle for their homeland were arrested, tortured, tormented and harassed for their participation in the Second Resistance. The memory of the fallen was not commemorated. Among the absurd laws was the ban on wearing the decorations of foreign countries unless the person concerned had the permission of the president, who at that time was Klement Gottwald, a staunch Stalinist. Full rehabilitation and recognition of these heroes came only after the fall of the communist regime in 1989, which fewer than two hundred airmen who fought in the ranks of the RAF lived to see. That is why the names of all those who died for our freedom must never be forgotten.