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149:. He destroyed three enemy aircraft by himself and shared in the destruction of three more. In March 1941, Prchal was posted as an instructor to train fighter pilots. At this time, he volunteered for training to become a night fighter pilot. Eventually he was transferred to Transport Command and repeatedly flew to
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Eduard Prchal was born into a family of cabinet makers. After completing his secondary education he worked for a brief period as a car sales representative. In
October 1930, he was required to do military service; with help of his uncle, a colonel, he applied successfully to the Czechoslovak Air
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who had instructed the
British Secret Service to make the necessary arrangements. Unaware that Prchal was still alive, Hochhuth accused the pilot of participating in this plot. A libel case resulted and a court in London found in favour of Prchal and awarded him substantial damages and costs of
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Unable to find work as a pilot in
England, Prchal moved with his family to the United States in 1952. Here, too, he failed to secure a position in either the air force or in the aeronautical industry. Instead, he worked in education in California until he retired in 1978.
122:. Prchal was soon recognised as being a skilled pilot. In 1932 he graduated from flying training as an operational military pilot, and in 1934 he completed night flying training. Prchal served in the army until May 1937, then joined the
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On 22 June 1939, soon after the German occupation of Czech lands, Prchal illegally crossed the border into Poland and a week later arrived in France. There he joined the
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In August 1945, Prchal returned to
Czechoslovakia and rejoined its Air Force until demobilization in early 1946. He then worked as the chief pilot of the
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Křídla pro vítězství a poválečnou obnovu – Českoslovenští letci u dopravních jednotek RAF a ve vojenském poválečném dopravním letectvu ČSR (1940–1950)
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Wings for victory and postwar reconstruction – Czechoslovak pilots in transport units of RAF and postwar
Czechoslovakia
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Force. His basic flying training ended in
October 1931, and he was posted to an observation squadron based at
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the commander-in-chief of the Polish Army and Prime
Minister of the Polish Government in Exile
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as the alternative to deportation. At the outset of World War II, Prchal joined the French
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Some sources claim Prchal fled on 30 September 1949. Other dates can be also found.
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and sole survivor of a 1943 plane crash that killed the Polish Prime
Minister.
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In
September 1943, Prchal was married to Dolores Šperková (1915–1990).
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186:(ČSA), but he distrusted the new rulers of his homeland after
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Prchal was later interviewed several times about the crash.
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Eduard Prchal is now remembered chiefly as the pilot in the
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Royal Air Force
Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II
308:"The Airmen's Stories – Sgt. E M Prchal"
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Some sources claim date of death as 12 December 1984.
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Czechoslovak Royal Air Force pilots of World War II
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102:(1 January 1911 – 4 December 1984) was a
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352:Short biography of Dolores Šperková/Prchalová
328:Zamach. Tropem zabójców generała Sikorskiego.
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430:Czechoslovak emigrants to the United States
257:Military figures of Czechoslovak resistance
166:crash of the B-24 at Gibraltar in July 1943
253:Vojenské osobnosti československého odboje
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216:. Here it was an ‘accident’ initiated by
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161:passengers to the Middle and Far East.
420:Czechoslovak World War II flying aces
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440:People from St. Helena, California
137:and made three "kills" during the
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143:Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
16:Czechoslovakian pilot (1911-1984)
445:People from Prague-West District
213:Soldiers: An Obituary for Geneva
460:Czechoslovak Air Force officers
194:in England in a stolen plane.
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184:Czechoslovak National Airline
157:. His role was also to fly
145:and later was posted to the
375:(both in Czech and English)
147:310th Czechoslovak Squadron
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100:Eduard Maximilian Prchal
25:Eduard Maximilian Prchal
202:Sikorski crash theories
126:as a commercial pilot.
465:Czechoslovak defectors
274:1 January 2014 at the
73:St. Helena, California
326:Tadeusz Kisielewski,
131:French Foreign Legion
90:Years of service
332:Dom Wydawniczy Rebis
435:Commercial aviators
373:They Flew To Exile
313:2009-05-30 at the
278:(pp. 238–39).
174:Władysław Sikorski
57:Kingdom of Bohemia
247:978-80-86808-11-6
218:Winston Churchill
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192:RAF Manston
93:1930 - 1946
399:Categories
354:(in Czech)
283:References
228:Literature
80:Allegiance
46:1911-01-01
389:Biography
241:), 2004,
206:In 1967,
151:Gibraltar
113:Biography
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330:Poznań,
311:Archived
272:Archived
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170:killed
168:which
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155:Malta
107:pilot
336:ISBN
261:ISBN
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153:and
63:Died
40:Born
159:VIP
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