* 28.05.1915, Sedlčany.
† 08.07.1941, Meores, Belgium.
The Early Years:
Jiří Jaromír Macháček was born on 28 May 1915 at Sedlčany near Příbram, a town about 35 km South of Prague. He was the son of Josef and Maria Macháčeková, née Veselá. He began his education at the general school at Chlumec nad Cidlinou. In 1928 his parents moved to Brandýs nad Labem where he continued his education at the grammar school there, matriculating, with honours, in 1934. During that period he was an active member of the Scouts and also the local Sokol movement – an all-age gymnastics organisation in Czechoslovakia whose ethos was “a strong mind in a sound body”.
Military Service:
On 16 July 1934 Jiří, having completed his education, was called up to undertake his compulsory military service. He was accepted into the Czechoslovak Air Force and was posted to the Military Aviation Academy at Prostějov, for training as an aerial observer. He finished his training on 15 April 1935, and with the rank of desátník (Cpl), Jiří was posted to the Observation Sqn of the 6 Air Regiment who were deployed a Chleb. He was only there for a short period before being posted to the Military Academy in Hranice in Moravia. He graduated from there a year later and, having been selected for pilot training, was posted to the Military Aviation Academy at Prostějov. Amongst his fellow trainees on were Emil Foit, Vilem Göth, Hugo Hrbáček and Josef Hýbler whom he was to later reunite with in England for the Battle of Britain. He graduated from there in 1937, at the rank of podporučík (P/O), having achieved 9th position out of the 51 cadets on that course.
On 30 November 1937 he was posted to the 46th Fighter Sqn of the 4th Air Regiment based at Pardubice. He returned to Prostějov for fighter pilot training between 4 October 1937 and 18 March 1938, from where he graduated, on 1 April 1938, as an operational fighter pilot. On graduating, he was posted to the 46th Fighter Sqn of the 4th Air Regiment, who were deployed initially at Prague-Kbely airfield and then at Pardubice, and were equipped with Avia-B534 biplane fighters.
German Occupation:
After the German occupation of Czechoslovakia, on 15 March 1939, the Czechoslovak Air Force was disbanded by the Germans and all personnel dismissed. By that time, Jiří had achieved 310 flying hours.
In the Autumn of 1939, he found a job as a clerk in an employment office in Sobotka and later in Pardubice but was determined to escape to France. With Poland now occupied by the Germans, his only route was south through the Balkans and across the Mediterranean.
The Balkan Route:
On 19 January 1940 he escaped, with other Czechoslovak airmen and accompanied by a guide into Slovakia and from there through. Hungary, Yugoslavia, Greece and Turkey. Here they boarded a ship which took them to Beirut. There they boarded the SS ‘Providence’ which took them to Marseille arriving on 24 February 1940.
France:
There they were taken to the Czechoslovak military transit camp at Agde, about 220 km West of Marseille. On 6 March, Jiří was accepted into l’Armée de l’Air and was sent for re-training on French equipment. The German Blitzkrieg of France commenced before his re-training was complete When France capitulated, Czechoslovak airmen were released from l’Armée de l’Air service. On the 24 June, Jiří and fellow Czechoslovaks embarked on the British cargo ship SS Apapa at Port-Vendres. They departed Port Vendres at 03.00 on 26 June and sailed to Gibraltar, escorted by the destroyer ‘Velox’, and then went on in convoy to England.
The SS Apapa arrived at Liverpool on the 7 July 1940 and the Czechoslovaks were transferred to the Czechoslovak transit camp at Cholmondeley Park near Crewe, Cheshire. Here the men lived in tents and, according to a report by the British Council dated the end of July, conditions in the camp were “of poor quality”. The grounds of Cholmondeley Castle had been given over to the Provisional Czechoslovak Government from 7 July until mid-October for the organisation of its fighting forces.
RAF:
Jiří and most of the Czechoslovak airmen there were moved to the Czechoslovak RAF Depot at RAF Cosford, near Wolverhampton. At Cosford, they were billeted in Fulton Block, at that time the largest barrack block in Europe. Here they were sworn in as members of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) and began their RAF training and also attended English language classes. The new recruits’ timetable consisted of drill, medical inspections and preliminary courses of instruction.
Jiří was admitted into the RAF VR on 2 August 1940 with the rank of P/O. On 6 August he was posted, at the rank of Sgt, to the newly formed 310 (Czechoslovak) Sqn based at Duxford. They were equipped with Hurricane MkI aircraft and commanded jointly by S/Ldr Alexander Hess, the first Czechoslovak to command an RAF squadron, and S/Ldr George D.M Blackwood. There he was assigned to the squadron’s reserve of pilots who needed to be re-trained on Hurricanes. With 310 Sqn becoming operational on 17 August 1940, it was no longer possible for re-training to be undertaken within the squadron due to shortages of aircraft and instructors. The reserve-pool pilots were posted to 6 OTU at Sutton Bridge, on 17 August, to continue their re-training.
Battle of Britain:
With his retraining completed, on 11 September 1940, Jiří and fellow Czechoslovak P/O František Weber, were posted to 145 Sqn who were deployed at Dyce, in North-East Scotland, and equipped with Hurricane MkI aircraft. Jiří made his first operational patrol in the Battle, when flying Hurricane P3896, taking-off at 13:35 and returning at 14:00. He was to make a further nine operational flights during that Battle.
On 9 October 145 Sqn redeployed South to Tangmere, near Chichester. During the Battle of Britain, whilst he engaged with Luftwaffe aircraft, he achieved no combat success, but was shot down himself. At 12:30 on 15 October, over Christchurch, Hampshire, whilst on patrol in Hurricane P7357 he was in combat with a Me109, from JG 2. His aircraft was hit and he received shrapnel wounds in his leg., He bailed out over New Milton, Hampshire, and on landing injured his right leg. He was taken to Lymington Hospital for treatment and then to the RAF Hospital at Halton for further treatment and on 11 November to Torquay for recuperation. He returned to 145 Sqn on 16 December 1940.
After the Battle:
In February 1941, the squadron’s Hurricanes were replaced with Spitfires and that April the squadron began flying offensive sweeps over the English Channel. They redeployed again, in May 1941, to RAF Merston, in West Sussex.
During a two-week period that Summer, Jiří achieved successful encounters against the Luftwaffe. His first was on 21 June 1941 when six Spitfires from 145 Sqn took off at 11:35 to provide bomber escort for an offensive operation to Saint Omer, France with 610 and 616 Squadrons.145 Sqn were detailed to provide medium cover for the bombers. Jiří was flying Spitfire IIb P8317. 145 Sqn orbited around St Omer for about 15 minutes at 19,000 feet. 12 Me 109Fs were seen over the target area, but although these dived down on the squadron, they overshot and no combat took place. On the return, Jiří encountered a Me 109E near Dover and engaged in combat, firing at between 100 and 300 yards, resulting in its destruction. Jiří returned safely to Merston at 13:10.
His combat report for this sortie reads:
I was White 1 as part of the Tangmere Wing, when after leaving English Coast near Deal I saw one Me109E flying in front of me about 3 miles East of Dover. The E/A was ahead coming towards me and I made a quarter head attack firing 4 bursts with canon and machine gun together. Black smoke came from the E/A which turned away to the left. I followed & the E/A took evasive action but was unable to shake me off. I gave him another two bursts & pieces fell off his left wing. By this time another Spitfire (S/L Bruton 616 Sqn) had joined combat & gave the E/A another burst using full deflection. The E/A pulled out of a dive at 3/4000 ft & the pilot bailed out about 5 miles SSW of Canterbury the aircraft crashing in the same vicinity.
Camouflage: Blue nose, light blue
Camouflage: Square wing tips, black crosses
Jiří’s next combat success was on 28 June, flying the same Spitfire when, at 08:45, he achieved a Me109 probable West of Cassel, France. His last combat success was achieved on 5 July, when he damaged a Me109f, West of Lille, Belgium, whilst flying Spitfire IIb P8341.
Last Flight:
He was killed in aerial combat on 8 July 1941 whilst on Circus 40 escorting a formation of Stirling bombers on a raid to Lille, near the French-Belgium border. Over France they were attacked by Me 109s from JG 2. During the dog-fight his Spitfire, R7218, was shot down, at about 10:00, and crashed at De Moeren, a small village West of Veurne, Belgium.
His body was recovered from the wreckage and he was positively identified from his dog-tags and that he was a Czechoslovak RAF officer. From that information, the Registrar at De Moeren was able to issue a death certificate.
However, for the reason of further identification and burial the Germans took his body away. No further information was provided by the Germans and thus he has no known grave and, to date, records detailing the burial location have yet to be found.
In the absence of any grave found for him, F/O Jiří Macháček is commemorated on panel 30 of the Air Forces Memorial at Runnymede. He was 26 years old.
Medals:
Válečný kříž 1939
Za chrabrost
Pamětní medaile se štítky F–VB
British :
1939–1945 Star with Battle of Britain Clasp
Air Crew Europe Star
Defence Medal
Remembered:
Czech Republic:
Brandys nad Labem – J S Machara School
He is remembered on a memorial plaque at the Gymnázium J S Machara in the Stará Boleslav 1 District of Brandýs nad Labem, where he attended pre WW2.
Brandys nad Labem – House
He is remembered on a memorial plaque on the house in the Stará Boleslav 1 District of Brandýs nad Labem, where he lived pre WW2.
Brandys_nad_Labem – Sedlčany
Brandys_nad_Labem – Sokolovna
He is remembered on a memorial plaque in the Sokolovna District of Brandýs nad Labem.
Brandys nad Labem – Zámek Brandýs nad Labem
He is remembered on a memorial plaque at the Manor House in the Stará Boleslav 1 District of Brandýs nad Labem.
Brandys nad Labem – Židovský hřbitov:
He is remembered on a memorial at the Židovský hřbitov in the Stará Boleslav 1 District of Brandýs nad Labem.
Brandys nad Labem – Stará Boleslav 1
He is remembered on the Památník obětem bojů za svobodu memorial at the Stará Boleslav 1 district of Brandys_nad_Labem
Brandys nad Labem – Stará Boleslav 1:
In the Stará Boleslav 1 District of Brandys_nad_Labem a street – ulice Jiřího Macháčka – is named after him.
Prague 1 – St Vitus Cathedral:
He is remembered in the Remembrance book at St Vitus Cathedral, Hradčany, Prague.
Prague 1 – Klárov:
In November 2017, his name, along with the names of 2533 other Czechoslovak men and women who had served in the RAF during WW2, was unveiled at the Winged Lion Monument at Klárov, Prague.
Prague 3 – The Army Museum:
Prague 6 – Dejvice:
He is named on the Memorial for the fallen Czechoslovak airmen of 1939-1945, at Dejvice, Prague 6.
Great Britain :
Capel le Ferne, Kent:
He is commemorated, along with the other 2940 Battle of Britain aircrew, on the Christopher Foxley-Norris Memorial Wall at the National Battle of Britain Memorial at Capel-le-Ferne, Kent:
Hawkinge:
Jiří is remembered on the Czechoslovak Battle of Britain pilots memorial at the Kent Battle of Britain Museum at Hawkinge, Kent. It was unveiled on 28 October 2025, to commemorate the 88 Czechoslovaks who flew in that battle.
London – Battle of Britain Memorial:
He is also commemorated on the London Battle of Britain Memorial:
London – St Clement Danes:
Jiří Macháček is remembered in the Remembrance book at St Clements Danes Church, London.
London – West Hampstead:
He is remembered on the Memorial Plaque at the Bohemia House, the former Czechoslovak National House, at West Hampstead, London.
Article last updated: 31.10.2025.
