- Tibor Tobak
Tibor Tobak (1922–2001) was a
World War II fighter pilot serving in the 3rd squadron of Hungarian 101st "Puma" air wing, who survived the war with two serious injuries and 5 aerial victories. Shortly after the fall of communist rule he wrote a 300 page novel based on his notes, diaries and preserved personal letters. The 1991 book titled "Pumas on the ground and in the air" was praised for style, thrill, as well as day-by-day documentary accuracy. It was subsequently translated to and published in German and French languages after three Hungarian editions.The publication of Tobak's Puma book sparked unexpectedly great public interest in the history of pre-1945 Hungarian
aviation andair force , which was a strictly banned subject during thecommunist bloc era. Tibor Tobak quickly became the key personality representing and organizing veteran Hungarian militaryaviator s. He wrote several more short stories commemorating the service of Hungarian bomber and aerial reconnaissance units in WWII. He was decorated and promoted to the rank of acolonel (retired) by the democratic government for his work in preserving an important part of Hungarianmilitary history .Tobak's Puma book is organized into several chapters. These address his
flight school and fighter academy studies, months of service as a courier pilot inTransylvania , his entry to the Pumas and the first fights against USAAF bomber formations during the summer and autumn of 1944. (The full Puma unit, nominally the "101st wing", was worth no more than thirtyMe-109 G6 fighter planes, yet sent alone to attack US formations consisting of 500 B-17 orB-24 heavy bombers and 200P-51 Mustang fighters). Tobak documents his severe injury and an adventurous journey to and from a hospital inGermany through the chaos of day-and-night alliedcarpet bombing campaign.The final part of his Puma book deals with war on the soviet front, against Il-2 ground support battle-aircraft and their Yak and
Lavochkin fighter cover, where the Me-109 was at disadvantage in low altitude operations. The book ends with the Puma's fighting retreat intoAustria and torching its remaining planes onRaffelding airfield on6 May 1945 , with the badly burnt Tobak watching from the sideline. The Puma unit eventually offeres itself captive to theUS Army .Books written by Tibor Tobak
Tobak Tibor: Pumák földön-égen, Egy vadászrepülő kalandjai, Háttér, Budapest, 1989.
Tobak Tibor : Pumák és a többiek : Mindig túlerővel szemben. Budapest,: HungAvia, 1990.
Tobak Tibor: Pumák és boszorkányok. Zrínyi, Budapest, 1995.
Tobak Tibor: Les pumas rouges. Témoignage d'un as de la chasse hongroise, 1941-1945, Alerion, 1996.
External links
* [http://www.cieldegloire.com/008_tobak.php French site dedicated to Tibor Tobak]
* [http://www.pumaszallas.hu/mainTortenelem.html Hungarian dedicated to the Puma fighters]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
