Destination England -
Germany Invades With Airstrikes
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4. Germany Invades with Airstrikes
We had hardly unpacked when, during the early morning of Friday1st
September 1939, I had a dream. I dreamed I was walking in the
local cemetery between freshly made graves with names on them, and
during that time I was crying, which is very unusual because it is not
in my nature. I was crying because couldn't find a gravestone one
with my name on it. Then I woke up.
About half an hour later an alarm was sounded, and we had to get up in
hurry. We saw twelve Dorniers with black crosses painted under
their wings, flying low over our quarters and dropping bombs on hangars
which then caught fire. We ran towards the hangars to put out the
flames and rescue the aircraft, when another wave of bombers flew in
low towards us, shooting from machine guns and forcing us to run behind
the hangars or as far away as possible.
I wasn't yet used to making a quick withdrawal and so I didn't get
far. When they started dropping bombs again, without hesitation
I dropped on my stomach behind a little building 10 metres across which
contained the aerodrome transformers. The builders hadn't yet
attached gutters to the building and the rainwater falling from the
roof had formed a small gully. It wasn't much of a place to hide
but the bombs were already falling and it was possible to feel their
heat and smell the cordite. Each time a bomb exploded, the
pressure of air was lifting me up even while I was trying to hold on,
using my hands and nails, to the ground on which I was lying.
I decided to change my position before the next wave of Dorniers
arrived, which was about 10 minutes later. I jumped over the
fence and took cover in a field of growing potatoes. I hoped that
there I wouldn't be seen but the invaders, after destroying all the
hangars and most of the aircraft, went on a shooting spree over the
surrounding fields and woods. My forearm was slightly grazed by a
bullet, but I suffered no real harm. The friends whose names I
had seen in my dream were killed. I don't know how many people
lost their lives altogether, but casualties were quite
considerable.
We didn't learn until noon that day and then from Warsaw radio, that
German forces had invaded Poland from the west (from Germany), from the
south (from Czechoslovakia) and from the north (East Prussia). We
did not sleep that night or any other on the aerodrome. We slept
in a local cemetery lying between the gravestones. Both day and
night we had to put lookout posts around the surrounding area, having
heard that the enemy's Panzer units were not far away.
On one of these nights, when it was the turn of my platoon to carry out
these lookout duties, I, being in charge, took one soldier with me and
went around to check on the outposts. To my surprise, at one
outpost I found an occupant, (whom I had previously called the 'black
sheep of the family'), fast asleep with the rifle between his
legs. Before waking him, I removed his rifle and put it aside and
then I woke him up. I will not mention here what was said at the
time. Of course he denied being asleep, but when asked about his
rifle he could not account for not having it. He was lucky as he
could have been court-martialed for this.
Early the next morning we were evacuated from the place by train,
traveling south east. There were rumors that we might be going
to Romania where planes sent by England were awaiting us. It was
wishful thinking and very improbable. (At the time they didn't
have enough for themselves).
We spent a few days on the train where we were joined by civilian
evacuees. Very often the train was stopped because of air raids
and we had to run into the woods. As machine gunners were
defending the train from being bombed, we were 'dancing' around the
trees to avoid being hit by bullets from the circling planes
above. After a few days on and off the train, we had to abandon
it and continue on foot. The railway lines had been destroyed.
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© Nick Bailey & Krys Bailey (nee Stendera) & Jozef Stendera
2013-2020