F/Lt KOUKAL Josef

author's collection

Official No.: 787 979 (120 764) Date and place of birth: 6th May 1912, Jenisovice Date and place of death: 23rd February 1980, Luze

War Service

Unit	Since	To	Rank
310	15.07.1940	07.09.1940	Sgt
No. 5(P)AFU	19.01.1943	23.02.1943	P/O
No. 53 OTU	23.02.1943	04.05.1943	P/O
312	04.05.1943	01.08.1943	P/O
No. 1 DF	01.08.1943	August 1943	P/O
CIG	08.11.1943	1945	F/O - F/Lt

He became member of No. 310 Czechoslovak Fighter Squadron on 15th July 1940 in Duxford. There he passed retraining on Hurricane and started his operational duty. On 7th September 1940 he shot down one Bf 110 but few minutes later he was shot down by Bf 109. One of fuel tanks of his Hurricane I V7437 was hit by 20mm cannon shell and in few seconds was plane felling in flames. He was unable to bale out due to strong pressure of air and the fire was all around him. In the height of about 4000 metres one of fuel tanks exploded and he was fired away from the cockpit with all his dress in flames. He endured big paint but he was able to think that he need to extinguished burning dress before he could open his parachute. So he was felling long time until the flames were extinguished by the stream of air. Then, in few hundrets of metres, he opened his parachute and landed in garden on Sheppey Island. He suffered burns on 72% of his body and more then next two years he spent in hospitals and he was operated 22 times by Sir Archibald McIndoe. Then he wanted to return to flying again! On 19th January 1943 he passed refresh pilot's course at No. 5 (Pilots) Advanced Unit. On 23rd February he began operatinal training at No. 53 OTU on Spitfire and on 4th May he was posted to No. 312 Czechoslovak Fighter Squadron for operational duty again. There he stayed only till the end of July 1943 when on 1st August he moved to No. 1 Delivery Flight for short non-operational service. On 8th November 1943 he was posted to the Czechoslovak Inspectorate General to London where he finished the war in the rank of Flight Lieutenant as a member of Personnel department. For his duty he was awarded by Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC). After return to Czechoslovakia he served as testpilot but only till 1948. Then he was discharged from this work and he was watched by the StB. He died on 23.2.1980 of heartattack.