III Dywizjon Lotniczy w walce z 1 Armią Konną na przedpolach Lwowa (9–19 sierpnia 1920 roku)

In: Przegląd Historyczno-Wojskowy, Band 21, Heft 3, S. 80-119

Abstract

In August 1920 the turning-point operations of the Polish-Soviet war took place. A battle was fought at the Wkra, Vistula and Wieprz rivers, which led to pushing back the Western Front troops of komandarm Mikhail Tukhachevsky from Warsaw and breaking up of part of his forces. The same month, in the southern section of the front, the Polish Army defended Lviv against the attempts of komandarms Alexander Yegorov and Semyon Budyonny. In the fights for Lviv, the Polish troops confronted the forces of the South-Western Front, including the legendary 1st Cavalry Army, which was the main force of the Bolsheviks intending to conquer the capital of Galicia. The Polish command, having no reserves at its disposal, directed the 3rd Air Squadron of Major Pilot Cedric Faunt le Roy to fight against the "Horsearmy". Despite the strength of even four escadrilles at its peak (5th and 6th Reconnaissance Escadrilles, 7th Fighter Escadrille and, with time, 15th Fighter Escadrille), between 9–19 August it had in fact only a few operational planes. In spite of this, the Polish crews were tirelessly performing their tasks: reconnoitering enemy forces – their intentions and composition – and, most importantly, delaying their march. In this article the author describes the composition and tasks of the 3rd Air Squadron, and the course of its fights against the 1st Cavalry Army in August 9–19, 1920. He also drew attention to the combat tactics of Polish aviators, which he analyzed accordingly