Jan Zumbach Jan Eugeniusz Ludwig Zumbach ( 14 April 1915 , Ursynów , Congress Poland , Russian Empire – 3 January 1986 , France ) was a Polish fighter pilot who became an ace during the Second World War . Early years . The son of Polish - born Swiss parents , Zumbach was registered as a Swiss citizen and hid his nationality in order to join the Polish army in 1934 . He served as an infantryman until 1936 when he transferred to the Polish Air Force . After graduating from flying training in 1938 he was posted to " 111 Eskadra Mysliwska " . Second World War . Zumbach did not fly during the German invasion of Poland due to a broken leg as a result of a flying accident during the summer of 1939 . He returned to his unit only to be evacuated to France via Romania . While in France , Zumbach flew the Morane 406 and Curtiss Hawk 75 with GCII / 55 . On 10 June , he was one of several pilots shot down by Bf 109s , but escaped unscathed . On 18 June 1940 , he traveled to England by boat and on 2 August was posted as one of the founding members of the newly formed No . 303 Polish Fighter Squadron . During the Battle of Britain , Zumbach scored eight confirmed kill s and one probable , mostly against Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters . Zumbach was shot down by a JG 3 Bf 109 over Dover on 9 May 1941 when returning from a mission , but he was able to bail out unharmed . Zumbach became one of the first Allied pilots to engage in combat with the German Focke - Wulf Fw 190 when he damaged , and in return , his aircraft was damaged by a " single radial - engined fighter " on 13 October 1941 . In December 1941 , Zumbach was posted to 58 OTU , and in March 1942 returned to 303 Sqn as a flight commander . In May , he was promoted to Squadron Leader and took command of the squadron , a post Zumbach held from 19 May 1942 until 30 November 1943 . During this period , Zumbach flew three Supermarine Spitfire VBs , carrying the serial numbers BM144 , EP594 and EN951 . All these aircraft carried the same code , RF - D , ( " RF " being the squadron code for 303 Sqn ) and " D " being the individual aircraft code . All three aircraft carried a cartoon of Donald Duck on the port side of the fuselage , slightly forward of the cockpit . Zumbach ' s victory tally was marked with German crosses under the cockpit on the port side ; confirmed kills were outlined in white , probable kills in red , and damaged aircraft with no outline . After handing over command of 303 Sqn to Sqn Ldr Bieńkowski , Zumbach spent a year in staff appointments , including the Polish Air Force Staff College . He returned to flying duties as the commander of the 2nd Polish Air Wing , No 133 Wing . On 25 September 1944 , he scored his final victory of the war , a probable kill over a JG 26 Fw 190 over Arnhem . On 30 January 1945 , Zumbach was posted to HQ , No . 84 Group . While flying an Auster that was used to visit units under the Group ' s command , he made a navigational error and ran out of fuel . He force - landed in enemy territory and spent the final month of the war as a prisoner of war . Zumbach ' s final victory tally was 12 ( and 2 shared ) confirmed kills , five probables and one damaged . Post - Second World War . Zumbach was demobilised in October 1946 but continued to fly for a living . Under a Swiss passport , he flew contraband around Southern Europe and the Middle East . In January 1962 , Zumbach was contracted to organise and command Avikat , the air force of Congolese breakaway state of Katanga , commanding it until December 1962 . He went on to deal in second - hand aircraft before again becoming a mercenary in 1967 , as he organised and commanded the air force of Biafra , flying the Douglas B - 26 Invader , using the " nom de guerre " of John Brown . In 1975 , Zumbach published his autobiography , originally available in French under the title " Mister Brown : Aventures dans le ciel " , it was subsequently published in German and English under the title " On Wings of War : My Life as a Pilot Adventurer " . Zumbach died in unclear circumstances on 3 January 1986 , in France and was buried at Powązki Military Cemetery in Warsaw , Poland . The investigation in his death was closed by order of the French authorities without public explanations . Decorations . Virtuti Militari Crosses are the most prestigious Polish military awards .