F/Lt SEDA Karel

author's collection

Official No.: 121 182 (787 549) Date and place of birth: 4th November 1908, Ujezd Date and place of death: 15th June 1992, Praha

War Service

Unit	Since	To	Rank
310	06.08.1940	26.04.1941	Sgt
No. 45 MU	1941	1943	Sgt - P/O
No. 54 OTU	1943	20.07.1943	F/O
68	20.07.1943	21.01.1945	F/O, F/Lt
Czech Depot	21.01.1945	Feb 1945	F/Lt
MC Squadron	Feb 1945	Aug 1945	F/Lt

He came to No. 310 Czechoslovak Fighter Squadron to Duxford on 6th August 1940 and passed retraining on Hurricane there. During the Battle of Britain he made many operation flights with only one success on 7th September when he damaged one Bf 110 near London. On 26th April 1941 he finished his operational duty with No. 310 Squadron and after short rest he was posted to No. 45 Maintenance Unit (MU). There he stayed for about two years and flew many different types of aircrafts from single engine Magister to fourengine Halifax. Then he moved to No. 54 Operational Training Unit (OTU) to Church Fenton for twin-engine night fighter operational training where he made a crew with radar operator P/O Drahomir Hradsky. On 20th July 1943 they were posted to No. 68 Night Fighter Squadron. On 4th February 1944 he and P/O Hradsky shot down one Junkers Ju 188 over sea. On 21st January 1945 his crew finished operational duty at No. 68 Squadron and was transfered to Czechoslovak Depot to Cosford. In February he was posted to Metropolitan Communication Squadron (Transport Command) where he stayed till August 1945 when he returned back to Prague. After his return to Czechoslovakia he served as Captain of Czechoslovak Aerolines (CSA). In July 1950 he was fired out from the CSA by Communists as many other ex-RAF pilots. So he with four other ex-RAF members planed to escape with theie families. They had bad luck - the man Karel Ulehla, who promised them to help with crossing of the border was instigator of the Communist Secret Service and the whole group was arrested. He was judged and imprisioned for 14 years. First 4 months he spend in jailhouse Bory in Plzen and then he was transfered to Horni Slavkov to uranios mine named "PROKOP". After some time he was sent to another notorious mine in Jachymov. On 14th May 1958 he was discharged and after long time he was able to find out job as electrician in Tesla Karlin where he stayed till his retirement. So Tesla Karlin have for years one extraordinary electrician who have flew as pilot on 116 different types of aircrafts and spent more then 8600 hours in the air! In 1966 he was fully rehabilitated. He died on 15th June 1992 in Prague.