# Polish 303 Squadron RAF: History, Pilots and Films Source: https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/military/no-303-squadron/ Last updated: 2026-10-07 Summary: No. 303 (Polish) Squadron RAF: formation at Northolt, the Battle of Britain, famous pilots, their fate after 1945, the 2018 films and tracing an airman. Publisher: The Polish Genealogist (professional Polish genealogy research, polishgenealogist.co.uk) --- No. 303 (Polish) Squadron was a Polish fighter squadron of the Royal Air Force, formed at RAF Northolt in west London on 2 August 1940. Known as the Kościuszko Squadron, it joined the Battle of Britain late but was credited by Fighter Command with 126 German aircraft destroyed in about six weeks, the highest claim of any RAF squadron in the battle. It flew Hurricanes in 1940, then Spitfires and finally Mustangs, and was disbanded at the end of 1946. > **Did a relative serve with the Polish Air Force?** We trace an airman’s service through British and Polish records and explain what each document shows. [Trace the airman’s service](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/services/polish-military-service-records-research/) ### How 303 Squadron was formed at RAF Northolt Its airmen had fought in Poland in 1939 and many again in France in 1940 before reaching Britain. No. 303 was only the second Polish fighter squadron to form in the United Kingdom, after No. 302. The Polish commander was Major Zdzisław Krasnodębski, and the RAF appointed Squadron Leader Ronald Kellett as commanding officer, with British and Canadian flight commanders, including Flight Lieutenant John Kent, to teach RAF language and procedure. The RAF was slow to let the Poles fly operationally until the shortage of fighter pilots in 1940 changed that. #### The Kościuszko name and badge The squadron took its name and badge from the 7th Kościuszko Squadron of 1919 to 1921, a Polish unit formed with American volunteer pilots, including Merian C. Cooper, during the Polish-Soviet war. Its emblem, designed in December 1919, shows a red Kraków cap (the rogatywka worn by Tadeusz Kościuszko in the 1794 insurrection) and two crossed scythes, the weapon of the peasants who fought with him, on a background of American stars and stripes. The tradition passed through the pre-war 111th Fighter Escadrille, which defended Warsaw in September 1939, to 303 Squadron. The Polish name, 303 Dywizjon Myśliwski im. Tadeusza Kościuszki, was given on 17 September 1940. Cooper visited the squadron at Northolt in March 1941. ### 303 Squadron in the Battle of Britain #### First combat On 30 August 1940, during a training flight near Northolt, Flying Officer Ludwik Paszkiewicz broke formation and shot down a Messerschmitt Bf 110. The squadron was declared operational the next day, 31 August 1940, and from then on it was in constant action over London and the south-east, flying the Hawker Hurricane Mk I. On 6 September both Kellett and Krasnodębski were shot down, and Flight Lieutenant Witold Urbanowicz took command. In mid-October the squadron was withdrawn to RAF Leconfield in Yorkshire to rest. #### The 126 claims and what they mean The RAF Museum describes No. 303 as the most successful Fighter Command unit in the battle, credited with 126 enemy aircraft destroyed in 42 days, and puts the squadron’s losses at eight pilots killed. That figure is a wartime claims total, not a count of confirmed German losses. In fast, crowded air battles several pilots often fired at the same aircraft, so claims across Fighter Command ran higher than actual German losses. Historians who have compared the claims with German loss records reach lower totals for 303 Squadron, and their estimates differ from one another. Across the whole battle, the RAF Museum records that 146 Polish pilots, about 5 per cent of Fighter Command’s strength, claimed 203 enemy aircraft. A pilot counts as one of “the Few” if he flew at least one operational sortie with an accredited Fighter Command squadron between 10 July and 31 October 1940, the qualifying rule for the Battle of Britain clasp. See our guide to the [Battle of Britain](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/military/battle-of-britain/) for the wider story. ### Notable 303 Squadron pilots According to Polska Zbrojna, the Polish armed forces magazine, 238 pilots flew with 303 Squadron during the war, and more than 40 of them were killed. These are some of the best-documented names: - **Witold Urbanowicz** (1908 to 1996). Born in Olszanka, he joined 303 Squadron at Northolt on 21 August 1940 as a flight commander and led it from 6 September. He received the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Virtuti Militari. He later flew in China with the US 75th Fighter Squadron, was arrested in communist Poland after the war and died in New York on 17 August 1996. - **Josef František** (1913 to 1940). A Czech pilot, he joined the squadron when it formed. With 17 confirmed victories he was 303 Squadron’s most successful pilot of the battle. He was killed on 8 October 1940 when his Hurricane crashed at Ewell in Surrey, and he is buried in Northwood Cemetery. - **Jan Zumbach** (1915 to 1986). Born in Warsaw with Swiss citizenship, which he kept all his life, he was posted to the squadron on 2 August 1940, commanded it from 18 May 1942 and later led a Polish wing. After the war he flew as a mercenary pilot in Katanga and Biafra. He died in France on 3 January 1986 and is buried in the Powązki Military Cemetery in Warsaw. - **Zdzisław Krasnodębski**, the first Polish commander, was badly burned when he was shot down on 6 September 1940. After the war he lived in Britain, South Africa and Canada. ### Later war service and aircraft From 1941 the squadron flew from Northolt as part of the Polish fighter wing, escorting bombers and sweeping over occupied France, with rest periods at quieter stations. It covered the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, and its last wartime operation, on 25 April 1945, was an escort for Lancaster bombers attacking Berchtesgaden. The code letters (RF, later PD) help to date family photographs. In 1946 the squadron moved via Wick in Scotland to RAF Hethel in Norfolk, where it was disbanded at the end of 1946, when the whole Polish Air Force in Great Britain was stood down. ### What happened to the pilots of 303 Squadron after 1945 When the Polish Air Force in Great Britain was disbanded in November 1946, many of its members joined the Polish Resettlement Corps (RAF), which existed until 1949. According to Krzystek’s List, an index of Polish Air Force personnel in Britain, fewer than 3,000 of about 11,000 members of the corps returned to Poland, about 2,800 emigrated to other countries and about 500, mostly aircrew, joined the RAF. The others stayed in Britain. Those who went back to Poland were often treated with suspicion. Urbanowicz was arrested after returning in 1946 before leaving for America. Many 303 Squadron veterans stayed, married and raised families here. Our guide to [Polish veterans’ resettlement in Britain](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/military/polish-veterans-resettlement-in-britain/) explains the corps, the camps and the records they left. ### Memorials, exhibits, films and books #### Where to see 303 Squadron memorials - **Polish War Memorial, Northolt.** Beside the A40 near RAF Northolt, unveiled on 2 November 1948, it lists Polish airmen who died in the war. - **Northwood Cemetery, Hillingdon.** The war graves plot includes Josef František and many Polish airmen (see [Polish war graves in the UK](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/polish-britain/polish-war-graves-uk/)). - **Battle of Britain Monument, Victoria Embankment, London.** Its bronze panels name every airman who qualified for the Battle of Britain clasp, including the Polish pilots of 303 Squadron. - **RAF Museum.** Its online Polish Air Force exhibition has a 303 Squadron section. - **Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum, London.** Museum and archive at 20 Prince’s Gate, with Polish Air Force collections. The archive reading room is closed from 15 November 2026 to 1 March 2027. #### 303 Squadron films Two feature films appeared in 2018. *Hurricane* is a British film directed by David Blair, released in UK cinemas on 7 September 2018 and also known as *Hurricane: 303 Squadron* and, in the United States, *Mission of Honor*. It tells the story through Jan Zumbach, played by Iwan Rheon. The Polish film *Dywizjon 303. Historia prawdziwa*, directed by Denis Delić, opened in Polish cinemas on 31 August 2018. It is based on Arkady Fiedler’s book and is listed in English as *303 Squadron*. Both are dramatised. #### Arkady Fiedler’s book Squadron 303 Arkady Fiedler wrote *Dywizjon 303* at Northolt during the battle. The first English edition was published in Britain in 1942 as *Squadron 303*, and in 1943 a secret edition was parachuted into occupied Poland and copied by the underground. A new English translation, *303 Squadron: The Legendary Battle of Britain Fighter Squadron*, was published by Aquila Polonica in 2010. ### Tracing a 303 Squadron airman #### Is there a 303 Squadron pilot list? No single official roll of every man who served in the squadron is published, and we do not reproduce an unchecked list here. These sources let you build or check one: - **Krzystek’s List** (listakrzystka.pl) indexes more than 17,000 members of the Polish Air Force in Great Britain from 1940 to 1947, with service numbers, birth dates and places, units and burials, searchable by unit. - **The Battle of Britain Monument’s list of Polish airmen** names every Pole who qualified for the clasp, with biographies. - **The squadron’s operations record books** at The National Archives name the pilots on every sortie. #### The records to use - **Personnel file.** A Polish airman’s service record may identify units, dates and postings, while squadron documents provide operational context. We compare both through our [Polish military research service](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/services/polish-military-service-records-research/). Access and released detail vary; see the [MOD records guide](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/military/ministry-of-defence-mod-polish-service-records/) for the role of the personnel file. - **Operations record books.** No. 303 Squadron’s books are in series AIR 27 at The National Archives: AIR 27/1663 (August 1940 to December 1941), AIR 27/1664 (1942), AIR 27/1665 (1943) and AIR 27/1666 (January 1944 to November 1946). They can be downloaded from Discovery or seen at Kew. See our guide to [The National Archives at Kew](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/uk-records/national-archives-kew-family-history/). - **Combat reports.** Pilots’ individual combat reports for 303 Squadron from August 1940 to August 1943 are in AIR 50/117. Names are often misspelt in the catalogue: Krasnodębski appears as “Krasnodobski” and Kellett as “Killet”, so search by squadron and date as well as by name. - **Polish Air Force records.** Our guide to [Polish Air Force records in the UK](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/military/polish-air-force-records-uk/) covers the wider Polish collections. #### From the squadron back to Poland A Krzystek’s List entry or the MOD personnel file gives the airman’s date and place of birth, and the file may also name his parents. That is the key to the next step: the birth or baptism entry in the Polish civil or parish register for that place (see [finding a birth entry in Poland](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/vital-records/finding-a-birth-entry-in-poland/)). Pre-war military files may survive in the Central Military Archive in Rembertów, near Warsaw. Check every spelling: Polish names were often written without accents in RAF records, so Łokuciewski may appear as Lokuciewski. ### Frequently asked questions #### Is the 303 Squadron film a true story? Both 2018 films follow the real squadron and use real names, but they are dramatised. For facts, use the operations record books and service files. #### Why was 303 called the Kościuszko Squadron? It inherited the name and badge of the 7th Kościuszko Squadron of 1919 to 1921, named after Tadeusz Kościuszko, leader of the 1794 Polish uprising. #### Where can I find a list of 303 Squadron pilots? Search Krzystek’s List by unit, check the Polish airmen on the Battle of Britain Monument’s website, and read the squadron’s operations record books (AIR 27/1663 to 1666) at The National Archives. #### What happened to the pilots of 303 Squadron? Many were killed during the war. Like most of the Polish Air Force, most survivors did not return to communist Poland: they joined the Polish Resettlement Corps and settled in Britain or emigrated further, while a minority went home, where some were persecuted. ### Official sources - [RAF Museum: 303 Squadron](https://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/online-exhibitions/the-polish-air-force-in-world-war-2/303-squadron/) - [RAF Museum: Polish No. 303 Squadron and the Hurricane](https://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/blog/polish-no-303-squadron-and-the-hurricane-80k/) - [The National Archives: No 303 Squadron Operations Record Book, AIR 27/1663](https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C2504305) - [The National Archives: RAF operations record books 1911 to 1963](https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/royal-air-force-operations-record-books-1911-1963/) - [GOV.UK: Apply for the records of a deceased serviceperson](https://www.gov.uk/get-copy-military-records-of-service/apply-for-the-records-of-a-deceased-serviceperson) - [Battle of Britain Monument: Polish airmen](https://bbm.org.uk/the-airmen/poland-airmen-list/) - [Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum: Family research](https://pism.org.uk/family-research/) - [Krzystek’s List: Polish Air Force in Great Britain 1940 to 1947](https://listakrzystka.pl/en/) - [Institute of National Remembrance (IPN): Dywizjon 303 (in Polish)](https://ipn.gov.pl/pl/historia-z-ipn/227031,Dywizjon-303-najslynniejsza-polska-jednostka-lotnicza-z-okresu-II-wojny-swiatowe.html) - [Historic England: Polish Air Force Memorial](https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1088113) ### Related guides - [Polish Air Force records in the UK](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/military/polish-air-force-records-uk/) - [MOD Polish service records](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/military/ministry-of-defence-mod-polish-service-records/) - [The Battle of Britain](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/military/battle-of-britain/) - [Polish war graves in the UK](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/polish-britain/polish-war-graves-uk/) > **Research service:** Trace a relative’s Polish RAF service · One person and one defined research question · [Explore military research packages](https://www.polishgenealogist.co.uk/services/polish-military-service-records-research/) --- Research help: The Polish Genealogist researches Polish family history, military service and citizenship evidence in Polish, British and international archives, with reports in English. 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