Mansfeld, Miloslav Jan (Oral history)

Czech NCO served air mechanic and pilot with 6th Air Regt, Czechoslovak Air Force in Czechoslovakia, 1930-1939; served with 111 Sqdn, No 13 Group, Fighter Command, RAF in GB, 10/1940-4/1941; officer served as pilot with 68 Sqdn, No 11 Group, Fighter Command and Air Defence of Great Britain Command, RAF in GB, 7/1941-5/1945

REEL 1 Background in Czechoslovakia, 1912-1939: family. Aspects of period as pilot with Czechoslovak Air Force in Czechoslovakia, 1930-1939: background to joining Czechoslovak Air Force as air mechanic; posting as NCO to 6th Regt; description of aircraft and equipment; visit to Soviet Union, 1937; opinion of Soviet Air Force aircraft; freedom of movement and living conditions; reaction to Munich Agreement, 9/1938; German invasion of Czechoslovakia, 3/1939; relations with German troops; sight of German tanks; attitude to German occupation and question of resistance; position of German-speaking Czechs; role as personal pilot for Czechoslovakian Very Important Persons (VIPs). REEL 2 Continues: Aspects of escape from Czechoslovakia to France, 1939: journey through Poland; interrogation; refugee status; journey to France; attitude of French towards Czechoslovakian refugees; story of singing Czechoslovakian National Anthem; question of joining French Air Force; billeting in Paris, France; medical examination. Aspects of period as legonnaire with 1st Bn 1st Regt, French Foreign Legion in North Africa, 6/1939-5/1940: posting to unit, 6/1939; issue of uniform, billets; medical examinations and inoculations; issue of service number; daily routine and duties; food; pay; drill; memories of outbreak of Second World War, 3/9/1939; journey from North Africa to GB via Gibraltar, 6/1940. REEL 3 Continues: Aspects of operations as pilot with 111 Sqdn, No 13 Group, Fighter Command in GB, 10/1940-4/1941: comparison of Czech and British pilots; description of training; posting to No 6 Operational Training Unit, RAF at RAF Sutton Bridge, 10/1940; first flight in Hawker Hurricane; attitude of Czech pilots towards Germans; relations with British civilians; problem of language; story of shooting down German Heinkel He III, 11/1940. Aspects of operations as pilot with 68 Sqdn, No 11 Group, Fighter Command and Air Defence of Great Britain Command, RAF in GB, 7/1941-5/1945: role with squadron; intercepting and shooting down German V1 Flying Bombs with De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito aircraft; description of V1 Flying Bomb; speed; question of avoiding debris from explosion of V1 Flying Bomb.