Capt. pilot
Mieczysław Adolf Medwecki (1904–1939) – pilot of the Polish Army, commander of the 121st Fighter Squadron of the 2nd Aviation Regiment in Kraków. The first Polish and Allied airman killed in combat during World War II. He graduated from the Aviation Officer Cadet School in Dęblin, after which he was assigned to the 2nd Aviation Regiment in Kraków. In 1939 he assumed command of the 121st Fighter Squadron, operating PZL P.11c aircraft. On 1 September 1939, at dawn, during the German attack on the field airstrip at Balice, he scrambled and was attacked by a German aircraft piloted by Leutnant Frank Neumann. He could not gain altitude, and his machine was hit by a burst of fire. He was killed near the village of Morawica, becoming the first Polish and Allied airman killed in combat during World War II. His wingman, Lt. Władysław Gnyś, who took off seconds later, managed to shoot down two German Dornier Do 17 bombers, which is considered the first Allied aerial victory of the war. Medwecki was posthumously decorated with the Silver Cross of the War Order of Virtuti Militari and the Cross of Valour.
