Lot 865
A WELL DOCUMENTED SECOND WORLD GROUP OF SIX TO A DECORATED POLISH BOMBER PILOT.
A group of six comprising 39-45 and Air Crew Europe Stars, Defence and War Medals, unnamed as issued, unworn in delivery box with enclosure slips and ribbons, the box addressed to 782898 W/O Fojud E. 42 Derby Rd, Eastwood, Notts. With a Polish Cross of Valour with Second Award clasp and Polish Award for Military Virtue (Virtuti Militari), silver and enamel, numbered 9518. With ribbon bar for the last two and award certificate for the Order of 'Virtuti Militari'. His record show that he was also awarded a Polish Air Medal with 2 Bars (a small scrap of ribbon amongst the archive supports this award). Other reports suggest the aviation medal was awarded four times and the Cross of Valour three times. With the recipients RAF cloth wings, four cap badge, and an extensive archive of images, documents and associated items including Pay Book, photographs, one of which identifies Edmund Fojud, and an extensive handwritten diary (in polish).
78289 Edmund Fojud was born on the 12th November 1920 in Chojno, Poznan in Poland to parents Wojciech and Maria. He married his wife Betty on the 22nd July 1944. His period of service in the Polish Air force running from the 12th of June 1937 until the 1st October 1946. Records suggest that Edmund joined the Aviation Non-Commissioned Officer school in Bydgoszcz in 1937 and was a competent pilot by the outbreak of the war. In September '39 he was evacuated to Romania then to Syria and he was in France by November. In March 1940 he trained with other Polish pilots as a Bomber pilot in North Africa. Following the fall of France he came to Britain where he was assigned to the 300th Polish Bomber Squadron on the 8th December 1941.
Prior to the outbreak of war there had been an understanding that the Polish Airforce would establish ta small number of Bomber squadrons in Great Britain, the 300th Squadron 'Ziemia Mazowiecka' was the first of these being established on the 1st July 1940. Initially based at RAF Bramcote the squadron flew 3,891 sorties during the war. Flying Wellingtons for much of the War they moved to Lancasters from March 1944. The final mission was flown in April 1945 against Hitler's residence in Berchtesgaden. The unit disbanded on the 2nd of January 1947.
Fojud flew with the squadron in Wellington Mk IV's during the first half of 1942 when there was a period of concerted high-intensity night bombing across Germany. He flew regularly during April and May attacking a number of different targets including Essen, Dortmund, Rostock, Cologne, Hamburg, Stuttgart and Mannheim.
The 1000 Bomber Raids hold a special place in the history of the Second World War, and 300 Squadron played an important part in the three well documented attacks on Cologne, Essen and Bremen. It seems that Fojud flew in the second of these raids. The Operations Record Book for the 300th (Polish) records the actions of 30/31 May when Cologne was attacked:
Operations were ordered with COLOGNE as the target and 15 crews were briefed. 15 Aircraft attacked the primary and all told 11580 4lb incend were dropped. At the briefing the crews were informed that this raid woud be the biggest ever attempted to date. Approaching the target seemed to be a mass of flame and smoke rising to a height of 10,000 feet. ... all captains of aircraft state that the target area was well and truly plastered and described the attack as 'PERFECT'. ... 'Jerry appeared to be disorganised and very little ACk-ACk was encountered, ... On the return journey, the reflection of the flames could be seen when crossing the Dutch coast.'
The Operations Record Book records fourteen Wellington Mark IV crews as taking part in the second 1000 bomber raid on Essen on the 1/2nd June. Fojud flew in V-1795 with Malec, Paszkowski, Muszynski, Zaleski and Wyporski, probably as 2nd pilot. The report states:
'Primary identified by river Rhine but target could not be pinpointed owing to poor visibility. Bombs were dropped on fire which was already burning, no bursts being observed. Photo was attempted'.
Fojud was attacking Essen again on the 5th/6th and 6/7th in Q-1725 as pilot, 'Bombs were seen to fall in the centre of town, no results were observed, but there was one huge fire in the town. His next flight in Wellington IV, V-1382 on the 8/9th with a crew of Offierski, Skubala, Trzeblatowski, Kwiatkowski and Konieczny was to be his most eventful. A typed account of the events of that night in June 1942 signed by Fojud is included with the archive, he describes the flight home in detail:
'Sergeant Pilot Edmund Fojud, V.M., K.W.
I was the pilot of a Wellington -- V. for Victory --
We went to the great raid on Essen.
Unfortunately for us, while still over Germany we met a Messerschmit 110 which gave us three long bursts of fire at close range and damaged our aircraft very severely. Our rear gunner was seriously wounded, he had sixteen bullets in his arms and legs and he is still in hospital.
It all happened in a few seconds. The intercom between the rear-gunner and the rest of the crew was severed. We had been flying at 15,000 feet, but when we had to take evasive action we lost height and found ourselves at only 8,000 feet, just over the top of the clouds.
We were flying on only one engine, as the starboard one had been damaged. A few minutes later the damaged engine caught fire. Bullets had pierced the exhaust pipe and flames were pouring through the hole.
They caught the fabric on the wings between the engine and the fuselage and it was all burnt off.
It was no joke trying to fly back over the enemy territory with the engine burning and making us a very splendid target. We tried to extinguish the fire by opening and shutting the throttle. I got the engine to work, but it had very little power. I had to stop it because of the fire.
Our tail trim was damaged and it stuck in a very inconvenient position. I couldn't turn without getting into a spin. Every time I had to turn, I had to try and make it on the port side because of the damaged starboard engine. I pushed with my legs on the rudder and the second pilot had to pull at the same time with his hands.
We were very thankful when at last we found we were over the sea, so that we did not need to worry any more about the enemy defences. It was not easy to fly at all, but at least the danger was less when we got away from the Nazi's A.A. fire.
Somehow we managed to reach the English coast, and we succeeded in making a fairly good landing at the first aerodrome we came to. We all felt we had been lucky to get back at all and to be able to land without a bad crash, for it was very difficult to do because of the bad trim of the damaged tail-plane.
The undercarriage was also hanging down, and the port wheel tyre had been shot away.
The armour-plated door was peppered with bullet holes. I think the airscrew looked worse than anything else. All the blades had bullet-holes, and one was as big as a man's fist.
Nothing but the best built aircraft could have made that journey with such damage. I would like to say to you how proud we are of our 'V. for Victory', and how glad we are to have been able to bring it safe home.
The official report of the incident adds that the attack occurred 35 miles West of Essen and that the wireless operator was slightly wounded and the 2nd Pilot baled out over enemy territory. The crash landing occurred at Martelsham Heath and it is also suggested that the enemy aircraft was hit by return fire as it was seen to dive steeply below cloud. Ward and Korcz in their history of 300 Squadron suggest that the 2nd pilot panicked and was taken prisoner when he parachuted into enemy territory.
Fojud seems not to have been unduly affected by his heroic efforts to bring his plane and crew home and he was in the air again on the 22/23 of June in B-1326 when he reports 'a successful and satisfying trip' bombing the the docks at Emden. He appears not to have flown on the 25/26th June when the last 1000 bomber raid on Bremen took place.
Following service with 300 squadron, presumably having completed his tour, he rested for a while in Blackpool until February 1943 where he flew Transport with 691 Transport Squadron and 216 Transport Group. Following the war Edmund stayed with the RAF as part of the Polish Resettlement Corps (Royal Air Force) signing up for two years on the 22nd November 1946, working in air traffic control at RAF Cranwell. He was discharged on the 22 of November 1948 at the termination of his service with a record of 'Very Good' character. He became a naturalised British Citizen on the 17th of July 1950, at which time he was living at his home at 42, Derby Road Eastwood, Nottinghamshire and working as a Comtometer Operator. He died on the 12th of May 1981. His wife Betty lived until 2018, the couple had no children.
