Commemorative plaque to serve as a continuing reminder of courageous Slovak Air Arms pilots in Piešťany

Eight pilots of the Slovak Air Arms took off from Piešťany airfield for Poland on 7 June 1939, with their shared intention of joining the emerging Czechoslovak Resistance abroad.

A commemorative plaque has been installed at the Museum of Military History Piešťany to serve as a continuing reminder of these courageous pilots of the Slovak Air Arms. The plaque and two stelas – one dedicated to Maj Gen (in memoriam) Otto Smik and one to Czechoslovak WW2 Resistance pilots and airmen serving at home and abroad in 1939-1945 – were unveiled in a ceremony, in the presence of Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď.

Speaking at the unveiling, Jaroslav Naď said: “The level of commitment of these pilots who, being aware of the highest risk to their lives, decided to actively join the fight against Nazi criminals is truly fascinating. With equally immense respect, we also remember our most successful pilot Otto Smik, a pilot of the British Royal Air Force (RAF) and a member of the Czechoslovak Defence Forces fighting at home and abroad.”

Under some dramatic circumstances, the pilots, led by F/Sgt Imrich Gablech, managed to get enough fuel for three Letov Š-328 and one Aero A-100 reconnaissance and bomber biplanes. Armed with two machine guns, they took to the skies unnoticed in the middle of the day from Piešťany airfield to Dęblin, Poland.

As Director of the Institute of Military History Bratislava Col Miloslav Čaplovič reminded us, these pilots were temporarily assigned to the Polish Air Force. He continued: “After the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, some of them were taken POWs by Soviet troops and were sent to the badly reputed Gulag forced labour camps before reporting to the RAF. After the war, Imrich Gablech, the leader of the group, was persecuted by the Communist regime. It was not until 1989 that his reputation for standing up to and fighting Nazi Germany was fully restored. He is the only Slovak pilot to have been awarded the highest state decorations in four different countries – Poland, the Czech Republic, the UK and, finally, in Slovakia in 2014.”