In the photo above, in front of the "Beaufighter" Mk VI "EW-R" X8005, standing from the left are: Sgt. W. Jakimowicz ( Chief Mechanic of flight B), Capt. Geradrd Ranoszek, Lt. R/Obs. C. Krawiecki. Other airmen are mechanics from 307th Squadron. This snap was shot on 8 January 1942, at the Clyst Honiton airbase. In connection with the text will be found photos: "EW-R" in flight and refuelling of the "EW-Z" on the Exeter airfield. At the end of the page a colour profile of the famous pilot Ranoszek's "Beaufighter" is displayed.
In WW II there was only one Polish night fighter unit - 307th Squadron. It must be kept in mind that the RADAR device was one of the main British war secrets during this time. One of most succesful pilots of 307th Polish Squadron "City of Lwov's Eagle-owls." was Capt. Gerard Ranoszek. In the night of 27/28 June 1942, flying with his radar operator Sgt. Jerzy Trzaskowski, he achieved his first success - demaging 1 Do-217 over Devon. On the night of 4/5 August 1942 this same crew took off for yet another patrol mission at 23:30 hrs. Soon they encountered German Ju 88 bombers. In 15 minutes, Ranoszek scored 2 victories. The enemy planes crashed in Devon county. At 02:50, the Polish aviators landed back on the Exeter airbase.
In the night of 24/25 September 1942, Ranoszek took off on what would become a most dramatic combat mission. This is what happened in his own words:
"History tends to repeat itself. With this in mind I took off with my "EW-R", at about 23:00, for a patrol mission on 15000 feet over the English Channel in the Hope Cove sector, south of Plymouth. In the back of my "Beaufighter", Captain Stanislaw Sawczynski (nick-named "Stary" = "Old" ) is sitting bent over the RADAR screen. Then and now he spoke to me over the intercom. It is full moon, just a few white cumulus clouds are on the sky, and the the night is so bright. ...
After
a while I am notified of an intruder arriving at high speed from
the south. I instantly changed course and altitude, and
"Stary" started to observe his screen intensively. Just
in that same moment I hear Stanislaw cry: "Contact!",
and notice at large distance, visible against the background of
the white clouds, a small point which is an aircraft rapidly
moving to the north. I make a sharp turn in order to cross his
way, and slowly I recognize the typical Dornier silhouette. With
satisfaction I notice that this must be an unexperienced bomber
crew , since the aft gunner opens fire at me from a hopeless
distance. Ad the only maneuver undertaken by the pilot is to turn
left, which reveals that he just ended the flight training school
(and there, the most common turn is to the left). Greenhorns. ...
Series of colorful shells pass above us, then I gently pull up my
"Beaufighter", knowing that after the gunner's
correction his next series will go lower. Exactly, I wasn't
mistaken, the second series pass under us. ... I fire a few
bursts and see only a few explosions on the wings tips of the
German plane. But it doesn't matter. During the attack,
"Stary" keeps egging me on, screaming in the intercom:
"Butcher bastard, wallop cad!" and a few other old
Polish volleys of abuse. ... I remark, that we come down to 9 000
feet altitude, and that it's time to end this game. Our enemy
also has had enough of the fun, and has started to fly to the
south, towards the French coast. He suddenly jumps a little high,
which means that he's dropped all his bombs into the sea.
In the direct pursuit I have the advantage over the German. I give full engine power - 3000 rounds per minute - and take position beneath the Dornier's tail. Distance 100-150 meters. The enemy aircraft grows on my windscreen. I take aim very carefully . He is in the gunsight. Growing. Now or never. Now! ... My "Beaufighter" spits a broad wave of fire. ...
Darkness.
Suddenly darkness. I'm sitting in a closed, black coffin looking
with interest around myself in the cockpit, instrument panels.
The engines are OK, the instruments indicate that everything's
fine. What's wrong? I know - it's oil. I was to ardent and came
too close. The exploding Dornier flooded my frontal windscreen
with thick, dirty engine oil.
- I see nothing. - I tell Sawczynski - It's dark like in a negro's @$$!
When poor "Stary" heard this, he thought, that I was shot in my eyes. He rapidly stood up from his place and started to move forewards in the plane, ready to bail out. At last his head appeared near my face. He watched me for some time, and certain that I wasn't blind, connected his helmet cable to the cockpit's intercom, and asked:
- Are you alive, brother ?
- The German splashed oil on my window, so I see nothing - I explain to his laughing face.
I turn back to the north and fly only after instruments. ... Meanwhile I try to clean the windscreen with alcohol from the de-frost equipment. Without effect. Then I tried to wipe the windscreen with my gloves. I stuck my arm out through the small side window. But it isn't possible to remove the black oil. The windscreen remains covered, and I really can't see anything outside. Soon we have to decide: To bail out, or not? ... I made short calculation of pros and cons, then I tell "Stary":
- We are above our airfield. You bail out, and I try to land!
A short moment of silent reveals that his decision wasn't easy. ...
- You now - he says slowly - Sink or swim. I stay with you.
- As you wish - I shrug my shoulders.
I open the small side window and with one eye on the instruments and another outside the cockpit window, I slowly begin to prepare the landing. At last I saw the well-known landing lights at the airfield and I come down after the cockpit instruments, exactly like during pilots "blind training". Now I am close to the ground, and I know, that soon I will feel the landing beat. My pilot's feeling (or rather, experience) tells me that the airstrip should be right beneath me, and with great relief I hear the sound of the landing wheels hitting the airstrip blocks. We bounce like a gigant kangoroo, but our machine can take it, next I correct a little by steering, now follows the second grounding, the brakes squeak and aircraft stops. I move from the main strip and on the runway I return to my standing place, where my Squadron personnel is waiting eagerly."
The landing ended this dramatic mission at 0:02 on Exeter airfield. In their report, the RAF Comission stated that Ranoszek only had had 1 % chance of a succesful landing in that situation. Was it simply luck or ... the pilot's mastery? The destruction of the Dornier 217 was confirmed with the discovery of some aircraft parts next day by the Royal Navy.
Looking for any information about Ranoszek's victim we found out some facts, well fitting to all above dramatic story. In the book devoted to history of KG 2 "Holzhammer", written by most distinguished German air war researcher Ulf Balcke ("Der Luftkrieg in Europa 1941-1945; Die Einsätze des Kampfgeschwaders 2"), there is a complete loss list of KG 2. And regarding the missions against England, he has been able to trace the name of the RAF pilots who were responsible for almost all KG 2 losses. But there are a few exceptions: Amazingly, one of them is the aircraft shot down by Ranoszek on 24/25 September 1942! Lets hear the small excerpt of Balke's book, Part 2: "Night of 24/25 September 1942: 8 aircraft committed against the small port of Truro (11,000 inhabitants) in the county Cornwall. The bombs dropped - two SC 1000 and 3,720 1-kg incendiaries - cause very little damage to the town (p.162). During that night was lost Do 217 E-4, W.Nr. 4283, call code U5+CT shot down near Cap Cornwall. Whole crew missing: Pilot Oblt. Horst Bosse, Beobachter (scout) Uffz. Walter Höse, Radio operator Uffz. Bernhard Lange, Flight Engineer Ofw. Bernhard Cyrus (p.443)." So one more mystery of WW2 was discovered...
On 24 December 1942 the 307th Squadron was equipped with the latest "Mosquito" Mk IINF. In the night of 14/15 January 1943 the crew Capt. G. Ranoszek - Lt. Cz. Krawiecki was given the honour to fly the first combat mission in the Squadron with the "Mosquito" "EW-R" DZ271. "R" - like Ranoszek...
| After war Gerard Karol Ranoszek,
winner in 5 night aerial combats (after some sources his
official score is 3 kills), emigrated to South Africa. In
70's and 80's he visited Poland few times. During his
visit in 1987 (or 1988) Ranoszek offered to National
Military Museum (Muzeum Wojska Polskiego) his original
war time uniform, decorated by Polish and British
Medals: Virtuti Militari, Krzyz Walecznych, Polonia
Restituta, DFC and many other awards (see the photo
right). Ranoszek died in 1993. Photo: R. Witkowski, LOTNICTWO '93 |
 |
Below is a colour profile of Gerard Ranoszek's "Beaufighter" Mk VI F "EW-R" X8005. This plane arrived to the unit on 1 May 1942. In the beginning of January 1943 this aircraft was transferred to the 125th Squadron RAF. Note the 4 white swastikas on the fuselage, close to the windscreen - indicating the number of victories scored.
1999.04.26, © WW II Ace Stories.