Piotr Laguna of the Grzymała crest was born on November 11, 1905 in the village of Kędziorowo (Wąsosz parish) in the district of Szczuczyn, province of Bialystok. His parents were, Father Piotr and Mother Julianna neé Chrudzińska. Piotr and Julianna Laguna, an estate leaseholder, were both from an old Polish noble family which roots can be traced in XV century. They had three sons (Józef, Henryk Bronisław and Piotr) and 4 daughters (Maria, Stanisława, Konstancja and Aleksandra).

 

When Poland was invaded by the Bolsheviks in 1919, Junior High School student Piotr immediately volunteered to defend his homeland. Since 233 Infantry Regiment was stationed in Łomża, the volunteer unit established in this area received the number In this regiment, in the period of 15 July 1920 – 15 November 1920 he served as a volunteer even though he was still under the age of 15. For his active participation in the fight against the Bolshevik invaders he was awarded the Commemorative Medal for the War of 1918-1921.

 

On 1 July 1925 he became a cadet student of the newly established Air Force Officers School (Oficerska Szkoła Lotnicza) in Grudziądz. After completing further training on 13 September 1927, he was assigned to the 31st Light Bomber Squadron in the 3rd Air Regiment in Poznań.

 

After fighting the Germans during the September Campaign, the majority of Polish flying and ground personnel followed their High Command’s orders to reorganise units of the Polish Military Aviation in France and continue the fight, therefore they were then evacuated through Romania and Hungary to France, where Lyon was designated as the base and Training Centre for Polish Military Aviation.

 

When France collapsed, Piotr Laguna and the rest of 1/145 Squadron left Rochefort at 9 am on 19 June 1940. They left their remaining 11 Caudrons and 2 Blochs and travelled to La Rochelle port. At 6 pm they embarked a British ship ‘Alerpool’ and in the morning of 20 June they sailed to England. During the Battle of Britain, he flew with the Polish 302 Squadron, becoming its commander in December 1940

 

On 27 June 1941, Acting Wing Commander Piotr Laguna entered the dispatch room elated with joy. He had learned that his wife and children were found in a refugee camp in India. He regained hope, which allowed him to see the future in slightly brighter colours during a really dark period. He had a reason to fight and live…. but he died on the same day.

.

As the commander of the 302 Squadron, he was very effective and highly praised by his fellow pilots. “Although he liked to joke, he never allowed any loose discipline and misconduct. He liked the military discipline and demanded it from his subordinates. Piotr was hard during training flights for his pilots. The flight under his command resembled that of the infantry team on the military range. He was one of the best pilots of 302 Squadron.”

 

With the beginning of 1941, his career gained momentum. In March 1941 Piotr Laguna was promoted to the rank of Major. In the same month, the RAF decided to form the 1st (131) Polish Fighter Wing based at Northolt at that time consisted of the following fighter squadrons: 303 ‘Tadeusz Kościuszko City of Warsaw’, 306 ‘City of Toruń’ and the British 601 “County of London” replaced in June 1941 with the Polish 308 “City of Cracow”. On 1 June 1941, Piotr Laguna took command of the Wing. He was ready for duty following a rest after he had been shot down by German fighters over South England and bailed out to safety.

 

Before the war Piotr had married Wanda, daughter of a pharmacist from Kalisz. They had two children: daughter Ewa and son Jan. When WW2 broke out his wife and children were initially evacuated towards the eastern border of Poland, but when Poland was invaded by the Soviet Union, Laguna’s family was deported to Siberia, sharing the fate of thousands of other Poles.

 

After almost two years of living in inhumane conditions, they were released. They travelled to India, eventually arriving in Australia. Piotr searched them through the International Red Cross and finally managed to trace Wanda and the children in India. The fact that they were safe was enough, although he also made efforts to have them come to England. Then came 27 June 1941, the day that shattered everything.

 

Initially the Polish Wing was ordered to provide escort for the Blenheims attacking a steel factory in Lille but as the weather worsened the order was given to sweep the area of Le Touquet and Gravelines in France. Piotr Laguna was flying MKIIB Spitfire P8331 "Sumatra" with code letters RF – M. Although the Wing encountered Bf-109s along the route, the German fighter pilots were reluctant to fight. Luftwaffe airfield near Coquelles was attacked and Poles destroyed 3 German fighters on the ground, whilst two others were damaged.

 

Unfortunately, one of the Spitfires was shot down by FLAK. It was “Sumatra” seen catching fire and diving sharply towards the ground southwest of Calais and crashing.

 

Wing Commander Laguna was killed on 27 June 1941. He was buried in Pihen-le-Guines Cemetery in France.

 

​

 

Source: Institute of National Remembrance Facebook post

​

​