- Stefan Sznuk
Stefan Sznuk (1896 –
May 6 ,1986 ) was a Polish was a pioneer Polish aviator, as well as an Air Force Major-General and was among the first to join the newPolish Air Force in 1919.Born in
Warsaw , he was educated at theWarsaw University of Technology .He fought in
World War I for Imperial Russia and later, after the Russian revolution, with the counterrevolutionary White Russians. [ [http://www.ogs.on.ca/ogspi/200os/05szn001.htm Obituaries of the Ontario Genealogical Society Provincial Index] , retrieved on2008-05-31 .]During the Polish Defensive War of 1939, he was staff officer and commander of the Polish Air Forces in the
Army Kraków , then in theArmy Lublin . He escaped toRomania , later toFrance andGreat Britain . InLondon he became the Chief Inspector of the Staff of thePolish Air Forces in Great Britain .Addressing the language problems of each nation controlling its own trainees during the 1942 Ottawa Air Training Conference (
British Commonwealth Air Training Plan ) of 14 United Nations countries that was designed to coordinate future air power; Poland's Group Captain Stefan Sznuk explained: "Only in one instance does a Polish airman speak this language distinctly and with the proper accent—it is when he speaks to the enemy using the eloquent language of the twelve English-made machine guns of his fighter plane." [ [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,790509,00.html "Ups & Downs" Time magazine, June 01, 1942] , retrieved on2008-05-31 .]Sznuk was the last
Polish Army and Air Force attaché in Canada before the Soviet-control of the nation. [ [http://www.polishheritage.ca/news_detail.aspx?news_page_id=4&news_id=146 National Army Plaque" Polish Heritage in Canada] , retrieved on2008-05-31 .] After the demobilization of the Polish Army he settled down inCanada . He helped over 4,500 Polish veterans emigrate to Canada afterWorld War II and was active in the Polish community as Vice- President of theCanadian Polish Congress .In 1970, he was made an Officer of the
Order of Canada . [ [http://www.gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=2314 Governor General of Canada] , retrieved on2008-05-31 .]He died on
1986-05-06 inOttawa , and was buried in theNotre-Dame Cemetery (Ottawa) .Awards
*
Virtuti Militari , Silver Medal
*Polonia Restituta , Commander
*Krzyż Walecznych , two times
*Krzyż Zasługi z Mieczami , Golden with Swords
*Order of Canada References
;Inline;General
* [http://biblioteka.info/archive.htm Archival Sources for the Study of Polish Canadians, Reproduced with the permission of the Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada, 2002] , retrieved on2008-05-31 .:Poland-mil-bio-stub
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