W/O KORBER Karel

Special L+K: Bitva o Britanii

Official No.: 787 980 Date and place of birth: 26th October 1917, Pecs (Hungary) Date and place of death: 3rd May 1943, Guernsey, Sept Isles

War Service

Unit	Since	To	Rank
32	08.10.1940	27.10.1941	Sgt
222	27.10.1941	16.12.1941	Sgt
No. 3 E.F.T.S.	1942	19.08.1943	Sgt, F/Sgt
310	19.08.1942	13.04.1943	F/Sgt, W/O
310	01.05.1943	03.05.1943	W/O

He passed retraining on Hurricane at No. 6 Operational Training Unit at Sutton Bridge and on 14th October 1940 he was transfered to No. 32 Squadron to Acklington together with two other Czechoslovak pilots. (Sgt Sodek and Sgt Sticka stayed at the unit only till 24th November 1940.) On 2nd December 1940 he made heavy handed landing near Woolsington and undercarriage of his Hurricane I P3036 was damaged, he came out unwounded. On 27th October 1941 he was transfered to No. 222 Squadron to North Weald where he began to fly on Spitfires and on 16th December 1941 he finished his first operational tour. Between the begin of 1942 and August 1942 he served as instructor at No. 3 Elementary Flying Training School (E.F.T.S.) at Shellingford. On 19th August 1942 he moved to No. 310 Czechoslovak Fighter Squadron where he started his second operational tour. On 13th April 1943 he left unit for short rest, on 1st May he returned back to duty and two days later he was killed. During escort of Whirlwinds near Batz Isles on 3rd May 1943 was his Spitfire VB EN960 heavily damaged by Fw 190 from I/JG2 over Guernsey - Sept Isles and he baled out successfuly. Unfortunately he released his parachute harness too early (about 20 metres over sea level) and he died when he stroke sea level. Commander of Czechoslovak Fighter Wing, W/Cdr Doležal, DSO, DFC, then descented to sea level with his Spitfire and saw him in blown-out Mae West but with face in water and without marks of life. He is commemorate on panel No. 134 of Runnymede Memorial.