The Early Years
Bedřich Krátkoruký was born on 8 October 1913, in the village of Hořátev, some 30 miles west of Prague and was the son of a farming family. Later the family moved to Byšičky, a small village about 10 miles away, where he attended the local primary school. He then continued with his secondary education at the grammar school at nearby Nymburk. Due to the death of his mother and the need to ensure the running of the family farm, he had to drop out of his studies and did not matriculate. That he did not achieve his High School diploma would become an obstacle for him in his military career as that was usually a prerequisite for promotion to the ranks of an officer.
Military Service
On 1 October 1935, for his mandatory military service, he joined the 1st ‘T.G. Masaryk’ Air Regiment stationed at Prague-Kbely airbase. He was selected for pilot training and from 1 July 1936 to 26 January 1937 he was assigned to the Training Flight of the 3rd ‘M. R. Štefánik’ Air Regiment deployed at Piešťany airbase in Slovakia. Between 27 January and 14 June 1937 he was assigned to the Military Aviation Academy at Hradec Králove for fighter pilot training.
On graduation from that course, he was posted to the 31st squadron of the 4th Air Regiment at that airbase, who were equipped with Avia B-534 biplane fighter aircraft, then the most advanced fighter used by the Czechoslovak Air Force. Bedřich was now an operational pilot and on 1 March 1939 was promoted to the rank of of četař [Sgt], and had decided to make the Czechoslovak Air Force his career.
Munich Dictat
The threatening overtures by neighbouring Nazi Germany regarding the Sudeten regions – the German speaking areas – of Czechoslovakia caused the Czechoslovak Government to declare a mobilisation on 23 September 1938.
Following this threat, Chamberlain, the British Prime Minister, Daladier, the French President, Hitler, the German Chancellor, and Mussolini, the Italian Dictator, met in Munich. The outcome of this was the Munich Agreement of 30 September 1938 wherein the Sudeten regions were ceded to Germany. Eduard Beneš, the Czechoslovak President, was not invited to participate in the discussion concerning the future of his country, instead, he was merely told by Chamberlain and Daladier to either accept the agreement or Czechoslovakia would have to defend itself without any support from Britain and France, despite there being a tri-lateral defence agreement between the three countries. As a result of that Agreement, in addition to Germany being ceded the Sudeten regions, Poland and Hungary took this opportunity to take some Czechoslovak territory on ethnicity grounds. Thus, about 30% of Czechoslovakian territory had been lost, which included its border defences, and the new revised German border was now only some 30 km from Prague.
German Occupation
Despite assurances given by Hitler at the Munich Agreement, that he had no further interest in territorial gains for Germany, just a few months later he extended his demands that the remaining regions of Czechoslovakia become part of Germany.
On the evening before the invasion, on March 14, 1939, Czechoslovak intelligence officers called a meeting where they announced that the threat of invasion was imminent and recommended measures which would prevent most important assets falling into German hands. However, no orders were handed down until too late. The Chief of the Czechoslovak Air Force General Fajfr and his deputy General Vicherek ordered that no aircraft were allowed to take-off. The Department of the Ministry of National Defence started organising the transfer of the aircraft to several airfields in Moravia with the intention of getting the airfleet to Romania and Yugoslavia. None of these planned intentions were carried out. The Germans occupied Czechoslovakia on 15 March 1939. Under pressure, Emil Hácha, the Czechoslovak President, had acceded to their demands and, in the early hours of that day, he had ordered all Czechoslovak military units to stand down, remain in their barracks and not resist the occupation. Germanisation of Bohemia and Moravia began immediately: they were now the Reich Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia (Protektorat Böhmen und Mähren), while Slovakia, in return for its allegiance to Nazi Germany, had become the puppet ’independent’ state of Czechoslovakia.
Upon occupation, the Czechoslovak military was disbanded by the Germans and all personnel dismissed. By this time Bedřich had achieved 340 flying hours.
Resistance
Just four days later, on 19 March 1939, former Senior officers of the now-disbanded Czechoslovak military had started to form an underground army, known as Obrana Národa [Defence of the Nation]. Obrana Národa also worked in co-operation with Svaz Letců, the Airman Association of the Czechoslovak Republic. One of their objectives was to assist as many airmen and soldiers as possible to get to neighbouring Poland where they could be formed into military units to fight for the liberation of their homeland. These two organisations provided money, courier and other assistance to enable airmen to escape to Poland. Usually, this was by crossing the border from the Ostrava region.
To Poland
Bedřich was one of the many Czechoslovak airmen and soldiers who regarded the German occupation as unacceptable and who saw it was their patriotic duty to go to Poland from where they could fight to achieve the liberation of their homeland.
On 15 July 1939, Bedřich, with fellow airman Zdeněk Procházka, succeeded in covertly crossing over the border to Poland. From there, they travelled to Kraków, where they reported for duty at the Czechoslovak Consulate.
Polish Disappointment
However, the Polish Authorities, who recognised the new puppet State of Slovakia, showed little interest in the Czechoslovak military who were escaping across their border in groups and would not allow independent Czechoslovak units to be established on its territory as they were concerned about antagonising neighbouring Nazi Germany.
Instead, they learnt that Vladimír Znojemský, the Czechoslovak Consul, had, via Štefan Osuský, the Czechoslovak Ambassador in Paris, negotiated with the French Government that 4,000 Czechoslovak military would be permitted to travel to France. But there was a condition: as French Law did not permit foreign military personnel on its territory during peacetime, the Czechoslovaks would be required to enlist in the French Foreign Legion for a period of five years – but with the assurance that in the event of war being declared, the Czechoslovaks would be released from the Legion and transferred into French military units. The alternative was that they would be sent back to the German Protectorate of Czechoslovakia, where their execution or deportation to a concentration camp would be the most likely outcome. Bedřich and his colleagues decided that their best choice was to go to France.
Initially, they were accommodated at the ‘Dom Turystczny’, a cheap tourist hostel near the Czechoslovak Consulate, whilst preparations were made for their onwards journey to France. Then, on 25 July, Bedřich was relocated to Bronowice Małe, a former Polish Army barracks on the outskirts of Kraków, which was now utilised as a temporary transit camp where the escaped Czechoslovak military were billeted. There he was the 1221st Czechoslovak escapee to be registered there. In the meantime, there was very little for the escapees to do there apart from being patient, keeping fit, exercising, and occasionally playing football against local Polish teams.
To France
After a short stay at Bronowice Małe, Bedřich was one of the 547 Czechoslovak escapees who went by train to Gdynia, where, on 29 July, they boarded the MS ‘Chrobry’, a Polish transatlantic passenger ship owned by the Gdynia-America Shipping Lines Ltd for their routes between Poland and South America. This was its maiden voyage to South America, and it would stop at Boulogne, France, so that the Czechoslovaks could disembark there. The MS ‘Chrobry’ arrived at Boulogne on the night of 31 July/1 August.
France
Early the following morning, Bedřich and his fellow escapees disembarked onto French soil. There, they were met by the Czechoslovak Defence Attaché from the Czechoslovak Embassy, Paris, who gave each of them a little French money for their immediate needs. After some food, they boarded a train for the thirteen-hour journey to Paris. They arrived there at 17:30 and were taken by coach to the Foreign Legion’s recruitment centre at Place Balard to complete enlistment formalities and undertake medical examinations. By 21 August, these were completed, and they were awaiting transfer to their training base at Sidi-bel-Abbès, Algeria. This time was to serve as a familiarisation period to learn the ways of the Legion and to study French crash courses, and they took every opportunity to practise their new language skills with French girls.
l’Armée de l’Air
Before Bedřich was able to be transferred to the Legion’s training centre at Sidi-bel-Abbes, Algeria, Germany invaded Poland on 1 September 1939, and two days later, France and Britain declared war on Germany as their ultimatum to Germany to withdraw from Poland had been ignored. Instead, he was released from his Legion service and was transferred to the l’Armée de l’Air’s BA 117 recruitment centre at Base Aérienne de Dugny, Paris, with the rank of caporal-chef. On 11 September he was assigned to the Centre d’Instruction de Chasse at Chartres, the l’Armée de l’Air training airbase, about 50 miles South-West of Paris, for re-training on French Potez XXV and Morane-Saulnier MS.230 elementary trainers and then the Morane-Saulnier MS-406c fighter aircraft.
The relative calm of the Phoney War ended at 05:35 on 10 May 1940 when Germany attacked Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg and France. In France they came through the dense Ardennes Forest to skirt around the main defence of the Maginot line and swept Northwards towards the English Channel. The lightning speed and ferocity of their Blitzkrieg attack caused the l’Armée de l’Air units to rapidly retreat Westwards.
On 17 May 1940, having completed 20 hours of retraining, Bedřich was awarded his l’Armée de l’Air pilot’s wings and at the rank of Sergent was posted as an operational pilot to GC III /3 who were deployed at Beauvais-Tille airfield, 45 miles north of Paris. They were equipped with MS-406c fighter aircraft. Fellow Czechoslovaks posted with him that day were Jan Čermák, František Běhal, Tomáš Kruml, Karel Kuttelwascher and Josef Novák. There they joined compatriots Evžen Čížek, Josef Hubáček and Václav Šlouf who had been posted to the unit on 2 December 1939.
On 21 May, GC III/3 redeployed to Cormeilles-en-Vexin airbase, 40km North of Paris. They were withdrawn from the front line as its pilots were now exhausted from combat, and on 25 May, the unit was in need of re-equipping with the more powerful French Dewoitine Dw-520c fighter aircraft, which was comparable in performance to the Luftwaffe’s Me 109 fighter aircraft.
During the Battle of France Bedřich flew 14 operational hours and achieved combat success:
| Date | Aircraft | Time | Action |
19.05.40 | MS-406C no. 60 | 18:30 | a Me 109 shared victory, near Bruguelette. |
19.05.40 | MS-406C no. 60 | 18:30 | a Me 109 probable at 18:30, near Cambrai. |
20.05.40 | MS-406C no. 80 | 10:30 | a He III shared victory, near Monchy-Lagache |
13.06.40 | DW-520 no. 10 |
| a He III shared victory near Romilly |
Evacuation from France
The rapid advance of the German Blitzkrieg caused GC III /3 to keep retreating westward to avoid capture. By 16 June, they were now at La Salanque airbase at Perpignan in south-west France, their 11th redeployment westwards since Germany had invaded on 10 May. The French authorities had by now realised that the war on mainland France was lost and sought to evacuate as much of their military to Algeria as they could.
By the time GC III/3 arrived at La Salanque airbase there were some 250 aircraft from other units that had already congregated there en-route to Algeria. There, everything was very chaotic, and with few ground crew available, the pilots of GC III/3 had to refuel their aircraft themselves. On 20 June, they flew from France, over the Mediterranean to Maison Blanche airbase, Algeria and then to Relizane airbase, also in Algeria, some 120 km west of Oran.
It was there that they learned that France had capitulated on 22 June. Winston Churchill, the British Prime Minister, appealed to all the evacuated Czechoslovak airmen to come to Britain and continue the fight from there. The l’Armée de l’Air released the Czechoslovak airmen from their service so that they could make their journey to Britain.
To continue the fight, there was now only one place to go in Europe – Great Britain. With other Czechoslovak pilots in Algeria, those from GC III/3, they travelled by train for four days to Casablanca, on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, where all the other Czechoslovak airmen were now assembling. Here, on 9 July, they boarded the MV Royal Scotsman, a passenger and cargo ferry, which sailed on 9 July for Gibraltar, arriving the next day. There, on 21 July 1940, they embarked on the MV David Livingstone, which was part of a convoy of 69 vessels. They sailed for the UK, arriving in Cardiff on 5 August 1940.
RAF
On arrival in England, after security vetting and medical checks, like most of the Czechoslovaks, Bedřich path first led to the Czechoslovak resettlement camp at Cholmondeley Park, near Chester. The Battle of Britain was now in progress and there was an urgent need for fighter pilots and Bedřich transferred to the Czechoslovak Depot, at RAF Cosford.
On 14 August, as a trained fighter pilot he was quickly admitted to the voluntary reserves of the RAF, swore his oath of allegiance to King George VI and was awarded the rank of Sgt. As when joining l’Armée de L’air the previous year in France, the Czechoslovak airmen were given theoretical aviation training and language lessons, this time for British aircraft and the language was English.
Battle of Britain
On 14 September, he was assigned to 5 OTU at RAF Aston Down for re-training on Hawker Hurricane fighter aircraft. Bedřich completed the conversion course on 4 October 1940 and with fellow Czechoslovaks Sgts Karel Kuttelwascher, Jaroslav Novák and Otto Pavlů, was posted to 1 Sqn, at RAF Wittering, near Peterborough, where he flew in the closing stages of the Battle of Britain.
The squadron had been participant in the Battle of France and after their evacuation from France had been placed in 11 Group RAF Fighter Command and deployed at RAF Northolt and RAF Tangmere for the early stages of the Battle of Britain. On 9 September 1940, they had redeployed to RAF Wittering to rest and replenish their missing pilots.
After the Battle
In December 1940, the squadron returned to front line operational duties and were deployed at RAF Northolt from where they began intruder sorties over occupied France. On 1 March 1941, Bedřich was promoted to the rank of F/Sgt. During the spring to summer of 1941, the squadron made further redeployments to RAF Kenley, RAF Croydon and RAF Redhill, all of which were within 11 Group RAF Fighter Command.
With 1 Sqn Bedřich again achieved combat success:| Date | Hurricane | Action |
10-11.11.41 | IIa Z2490 | a He III victory over Thames Estuary. |
21.05.40 | IIb Z1365 | a Me 109 victory over North France. |
On the night of 10-11 May 1941, Bedřich had taken off from RAF Redhill, Surry at 00:15, flying Hurricane Mk IIa Z2490. At 00:30 he sighted a Luftwaffe He III bomber over Canvey Island, Essex and attacked it firing his guns in short bursts, using a total of 560 rounds. After the encounter he landed back at Redhill at 01:50.
His combat report reads:
I left Redhill at 00:15 hrs on Fighter Night patrol at 17,500 ft when over Canvey Island saw an E/A enemy port quarter and above. I climbed and made a beam attack giving a 1 second burst. The E/A dived vertically I followed him very closely making several quick quarter astern attacks. After this I noticed smoke coming from the port engine. I then overshot the e/a and pulled out of the dive at 500 ft. E/a was then still diving towards the sea. I returned to my base at 01:50. I consider the e/a to be definitely destroyed.
He made another patrol that morning, taking off at 03:15 and landing at 04:30, but without any Luftwaffe being encountered.
On 21 May 1941 12 Spitfires from 1 sqn took-off at 17:00 from RAF Redhill to provide escort for a bombing raid on the oil refineries and electric power stations at Béthune, France. The Spitfires rendezvoused with the 18 Bristol Blenheim bombers and Spitfires from 258 and 302 Sqns over RAF Kenley, Kent. The formation then crossed the English coast near Dungeness at 15,000 feet and headed for Béthune, some 45 miles south-east of Boulogne. The formation was engaged by Luftwaffe aircraft on the way to Béthune and also after the raid on the return journey. On that return flight, they were engaged by more Luftwaffe fighters and during the resultant combat Bedřich, shot down a Me 109. He was flying Hurricane IIb Z1365 and at 17:45, 4 miles north-west of Béthune, flying at 12,000 feet, he engaged with a Luftwaffe Me 109. From 70 yards, he fired 250 rounds from his machine guns shooting it down. He landed at RAF Manston, Kent to refuel and returned to RAF Redhill, landing at 18:25.
His combat report reads:
I was flying Black 2 weaving until squadron broke up on being attacked after Bethune. 2 Me 109’s attacked me from the rear approaching in-line astern. I evaded them and saw 2 more Me 109’s ahead of me. I turned and closed with the second of them and gave a long burst from port quarter to astern and saw e/a’s tail unit fall off and pilot bale out. After several more inconclusive combats I returned home and landed Manston to refuel and subsequently returning Redhill.
On 2 November 1941, Bedřich was commissioned at the rank of P/O. On 1 January 1942 he had completed his operational tour and for his mandatory rest period was assigned to 61 OTU at RAF Heston, west of London, as a flying instructor. The unit used Miles master dual seat advanced trainers, Hawker Hurricanes and Spitfire Mk I & II’s for the training. On 15 April 61 OTU [Operational Training Unit] redeployed to RAF Rednal, some 5 miles east of Oswestry, Shropshire.
To 313 Sqn
On 24 August 1942 he was posted to 313 (Czechoslovak) Sqn for his second operational tour. They were based at RAF Churchstanton, near Warmwell, Somerset, and equipped with Spitfire Vb’s and Vc’s.
There, the squadron’s role was to provide standing patrols and rapid scrambles to protect shipping in the Bristol Channel/Western Approaches and the ports and industry around Exeter and Plymouth. They also flew offensive sorties and bomber escorts to northern France. In November 1942 he was promoted to the rank of F/O.
Fateful Flight
Bedřich was killed on 15 January 1943 in a flying accident whilst participating in Circus 13, the escorting of a formation of twin-engined Boston light-bombers on a raid to Cherbourg, France. The bombers had completed the raid at 12:00 and the formation was heading back. But when changing positions over Cape Hague, France, his Spitfire AR5146, and Spitfire AR546 of fellow 313 Sqn pilot F/Sgt Jan Bláha, were blinded by the low winter sun and collided. AR546 immediately went into a spin and crashed into the English Channel about 12 miles north of Cape Hague and immediately sunk with its pilot.
Bedřich managed to nurse his damaged Spitfire back towards England, but about 15 miles south of Portland, Dorset he had to make a forced landing into the English Channel and his Spitfire sunk within seconds with no sight of him escaping from it.
Despite an extensive search of the area by the other 313 Sqn Spitfires in the formation, neither pilot was seen in the sea. A search later that afternoon by Allied Air-Sea rescue launches also found nothing. Neither of the two pilots’ bodies were found and both are commemorated at Air Forces Memorial at Runnymede; Bedřich on panel 125 and F/Sgt Jan Bláha on panel 135. Bedřich was 29 years old and Jan was aged 28.
Medals Awarded
1939 – 45 Star with Battle of Britain clasp
Air Crew Europe Star
Defence Medal
1939-1945 War Medal
Válečný kříž 1939 and bar
Za chrabrost
Za zásluhy I.stupně
Pamětní medaile se štítky F–VB
Croix de Guerre avec 2 palme
Remembered
Great Britain:
Capel-le_Ferne:
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:
Bedřich 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:
He is remembered in the Remembrance books at St Clements Danes Church, London.
London – West Hampstead:
He is remembered on the Memorial Plaque at Bohemia House, formerly the Czech Club, London.
Czech Republic:
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 2524 other Czechoslovak men and women who had served in the RAF during WW2, was unveiled at the Winged Lion Monument at Klárov, Prague 1.
Prague 3 – The Army Museum:
He is remembered on the Memorial Plaque at the Vojenský Ústřední Archiv, Prague 3.
Prague 6 – Dejvice:
He is named on the Memorial for the fallen Czechoslovak airmen of 1939-1945, at Dejvice, Prague 6.
Hořátev:
At his former home at Hořátev, he is commemorated on a memorial plaque.
Hořátev:
memorialHe is commemorated on the war mmeorial at Hořátev.
Nymburk:
At his former school at Nymburk, he is commemorated on a memorial plaque.
Nymburk:
At his former Flying Club Nymburk, he is commemorated on a memorial plaque, along with others from the club that had served in the RAF during WW2.
Article last updated: 30.10.2025.
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