Stanley Michel Kolendorski
Military ROLL OF HONOUR
He was shot down on May 17, 1941, the first Eagle Squadron pilot to be killed on active service with the RAF.
Object Number - UPL 17100 - Stanley 'Mike' Kolendorski straps on his parachute by his Hawker Hurricane Z3186 early in 1941. His Polish extraction is evident by his thigh pocket...
F/O Stanley Michel "Mike" Kolendorski - naturalized American, son of Polish immigrants. He had been living in California with his wife Charlotte May prior to enlisting in the RAF in Canada. His wife then filed for divorce because of this.
17-May-41. After being scrambled early in the morning in Hurricane Mk IIb Z3186 XR* (71 (Eagle) Squadron) to intercept Ju88's and He111's coming across the channel.
At 20,000 ft they came across escorting Bf 109's of the II./JG 53 "Pik As" over the Thames Estuary. Mike Kolendorski turned his aircraft sharply to intercept a pair of Bf 109; s, when a second pair opened fire on him. A warning was given over the R/T, but too late for Kolendorski. It would seem that he was killed in his cockpit as no attempt by him to bale out was observed. Other 'Eagle'-squadron pilots saw his aircraft crash land in the water and reported Stanley Michel Kolendorski KIA after they had returned to their airbase.
F/O Kolendorski's body was washed ashore in the Netherlands on 13th August 1941 near 'Paal 16' at the beach of Rockanje / West-Voorne, Voorne Putten island, Zuidhollandse Eilanden region. His remains were buried at the General Cemetery "Maria Rust" in Rockanje, municipality of West-Voorne.
Connections
See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.
Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Type Category: Fighter
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: Hurricane
- Unit: No 71 'Eagle' Squadron
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Site type: Airfield
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Born |
Jersey City, NJ, USA | 24 February 1915 | Jersey City, Hudson County New Jersey, USA. 24th Feb 1915. |
|
Other Killed in Action |
River Thames, United Kingdom | 17 May 1941 | After being scrambled early in the morning in Hurricane Mk IIb Z3186 XR* (71 "Eagle" Squadron) to intercept Luftwaffe Ju88's and He111's coming across the Channel. At 20,000 ft they came across escorting Bf 109s of the II./JG 53 "Pik As" over the Thames Estuary, Kolendorski turned his aircraft sharply to intercept, when a second pair of Bf 109's opened fire on him. A warning was given over the R/T but it was too late. It would seem that he was killed in his cockpit as no attempt to bale out was observed. The other pilots of his squadron saw his aircraft crash land in the Thames estuary and after returning at their airbase, reported airman Mike Kolendorski killed in action. The Luftwaffe-pilot acknowledged with the shooting down of Kolendorski's Hurricane was Gruppenkommandeur (wingcommander) of the II./JG 53 Heinz-Robert-Wilhelm Bretnütz (Munich, 24/1/1914 - Jubarkas, 27/6/1941) |
|
Other Washed Ashore |
3235 Rockanje, Netherlands | 13 August 1941 | Kolendorski's body was washed ashore in the Netherlands on the 13th of August 1941 near Pole 16 at the beach of Rockanje, island of Voorne Putten. |
|
Buried |
Old Cemitary 'Maria Rust', Zeeweg 2, 3235 AZ Rockanje, Netherlands | 15 August 1941 | Rockanje (Zeeweg) General Cemetery ´Maria Rust', 3235 AZ Rockanje, Westvoorne Municipality, Zuid-Holland province, The Netherlands. Grave ID: 1247005 (CommonWealth Wargrave) |
| California, USA | California, USA. | ||
|
Enlisted |
Canada | Enlisted in the RAF in Canada. | |
|
Other Assigned |
Kirton in Lindsey, Gainsborough, North Lincolnshire DN21, UK | Assigned to 71 (Eagle) Sqn RAF. |
Revisions
Merged with duplicate entry to include details from:
- Combat Chronology ;
- the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia
