Abakanowicz Piotr

Piotr Abakanowicz (1889–1948) was a lieutenant colonel pilot of the Polish Army and a soldier of the National Armed Forces. He graduated from the Cadet Corps in Kyiv and then the Pavlov Military School in St Petersburg. After graduating in 1911, he began his service in the Volhynian Guards Regiment in the rank of second lieutenant. During World War I he fought in East Prussia, where in December 1914 he was seriously wounded near Łódź. After his convalescence, in August 1916, at his own request, he was transferred to the aviation branch. He completed training at the Military Pilots’ School in Gatchina and then attended an instructors’ course in England. After returning to Russia he served in the aviation units of the Tsarist army. In 1917 he joined the I Polish Corps commanded by General Józef Dowbor-Muśnicki, where he assumed the position of corps aviation commander. After the corps was disbanded by the Germans in 1918, Abakanowicz was arrested by the Bolsheviks. Released on the condition of joining the Red Army’s aviation branch, he deserted in 1920, landing his aircraft at a Polish airfield in Žodzina near Barysaw. After being cleared of allegations of collaboration with the Bolsheviks, he was admitted to the Polish Army. Between 1921 and 1930 he served in Polish aviation, holding positions including commander of the 11th and 5th Aviation Regiments. He served in the 2nd Aviation Regiment in Kraków. In 1921 he was awarded the Silver Cross of the Virtuti Militari Order. In 1930 he retired from active service. During World War II he was active in the underground. In 1941 he joined the Union of Armed Struggle in Kraków, and from 1944 he was associated with the National Armed Forces (NSZ), where he served as commander of District VI (Warsaw counties) under the pseudonym “Grey Antoni”. From October 1944 he served as Chief of Staff of the NSZ High Command under the pseudonym “Barski”. After the war he was arrested by the communist authorities. He died on 1 June 1948 in the prison in Wronki, probably as a result of a beating by a prison guard.