Squadron 303 ( book ) Squadron 303 ( ) written by Polish author Arkady Fiedler became his most famous and popular book , selling over 1 . 5 million copies . Written in 1942 , the book is about the legendary No . 303 ( " Kościuszko " ) Polish Squadron ( Polish : 303 Dywizjon Myśliwski " Warszawski im . Tadeusza Kościuszki " ) of Polish Air Force fighter pilots who flew with Great Britain ' s Royal Air Force ( R . A . F . ) during the Battle of Britain . No . 303 ( " Kościuszko " ) Polish Squadron continued the traditions of the earlier Polish 7th Air Escadrille ( ) or " Kościuszko Squadron " , as it was better known , which was one of the most active units of the Polish Air Force during the Polish - Soviet War of 1919 - 1921 . Formed in late 1918 , Polish 7th Air Escadrille was re - formed in late 1919 from American volunteers , initially commanded by Cedric Fauntleroy , then by Merian Cooper ( who originally recruited the American pilots for this unit ) . Author Arkady Fiedler was a bestselling travel writer researching in Tahiti when World War II began . He made his way back to Europe and joined the Polish Army in France after Poland had fallen to the Germans . Fiedler managed to get to England with the other Polish forces after the fall of France , where he saw all the attention that the Polish pilots of 303 Squadron were getting from the British press — they were the highest - scoring Allied fighter squadron in the Battle of Britain . Fiedler recognized that their story would make a great book . He undertook to chronicle the extraordinary achievements of No . 303 ( Polish ) Squadron during the Battle of Britain with the blessing of Polish Prime Minister and Commander - in - Chief Władysław Sikorski . Arkady Fiedler began writing " 303 Squadron " “ live ” during the Battle of Britain , spending time with the Polish pilots and ground crew of No . 303 Squadron at their base at RAF Northolt , West London , England . He wrote the book in Polish under the title " Dywizjon 303 " . It was translated into English and published in Great Britain in 1942 ( where it went through several printings ) , and in the United States in 1943 . A clandestine edition of " Dywizjon 303 " was parachuted into German - occupied Poland in 1943 . Copies duplicated by the Polish Underground were secretly passed from person to person . The account of the successes of their fighter pilots , fighting in distant lands for freedom , boosted morale in the beleaguered country . The book inspired soldier - poet Czesław ‘ Czechura ’ Kałkusiński , serving with a forest partisan unit of the AK ( " Armia Krajowa " ) in the Częstochowa region , to write a poem entitled “ 303 Squadron ” which was set to music by his fellow soldier Henryk ‘ Garda ’ Fajt , and soon found its way to London via the Polish Underground where it was played over the BBC and heard by Polish airmen serving in Great Britain . " Dywizjon 303 " became a classic in Poland . It is mandatory reading for children in grammar school , and has gone through numerous Polish editions . In connection with the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain in 2010 , a new English translation was commissioned by publisher Aquila Polonica at the request of Fiedler ’ s son . This is the first new English - language edition of " Dywizjon 303 " since 1942 , and for the first time in English identifies the pilots by their true names . This new edition contains nearly 200 historic photos , maps and other illustrations and supplemental material to set the story in historical context . Winner of the 2011 Benjamin Franklin Gold Award for History and Silver Award for Interior Design ( 1 - 2 Colour ) . In " Flying " magazine , Lane Wallace noted , " Typically , fighter pilot stories are written either by individual surviving pilots or historians after the fact . But the pilots of 303 Squadron had an advantage when it came to recording their adventures accurately as they unfolded : Like Magellan , they had a professional writer assigned to the squadron and tasked with making sure their story wasn ' t mistold or forgotten . " Writing in The Atlantic about forgotten pieces of World War II history , such as the story of 303 Squadron , Sanjay Saigal asked , " shouldn ' t cultural literacy include knowing about Polish heroism in the defense of Britain ? " Publishing History . Great Britain United States Canada Poland Argentina Germany Audio Book Poland