Vrbka, František
Personal Information
Rank | |
Forename(s) | František |
Surname | Vrbka |
Gender | M |
Age | 18 |
Decorations | Pamĕtní Medaile Československé Armády v Zahraničí ‘Francie’ and ‘Velka’Britanie’ bars (Commemorative medal of the Czechoslovak army abroad with French and British Bars), Československý válečný kříž 1939 (Czechoslovak War Cross 1939) |
Date of Death | 23-03-1943 |
Next of Kin | Only son of František Vrbka and Libuše Vrbka (née Myslíková), of Bystřice nad Pernštejnem, Moravia, Czechoslovakia. |
Aircraft Information
Aircraft | Handley Page Halifax II |
Serial Number | BB281 |
Markings | NF-O |
Memorial Information
Burial/Memorial Country | Czechoslovakia |
Burial/Memorial Place | Ďáblický Cemetery |
Grave Reference | Unknown |
Epitaph |
IBCC Memorial Information
Phase | SP |
Panel Number | 272 (not yet erected on site) |
Enlistment Information
Service Number | - |
Service | Special Operations Executive |
Group | |
Squadron | 138 (Special Duties) |
Trade | Agent |
Country of Origin | Czechoslovakia |
Other Memorials
Location | Village Green, Tempsford, Bedfordshire |
Country | United Kingdom |
Memorial Type | Stone Memorial with inscribed Marble Tablets |
Memorial Text | In honour of the men and women of Special Duties Sqns stationed at RAF Tempsford |
Location | "The Barn" Gibraltar Farm, Tempsford, Bedfordshire |
Country | United Kingdom |
Memorial Type | Inscribed Stone Plaque & Framed Scroll |
Memorial Text | To commemorate the men and women of different nationalities who flew from RAF Tempsford to aid resistance forces in occupied Europe |
Location | St. Peter's Church, Tempsford, Bedfordshire |
Country | United Kingdom |
Memorial Type | Inscribed Stone Tablet, Wooden Boards, Brass Plaques & RoH |
Memorial Text | Remembering all those who flew from RAF Tempsford including those of the Royal Australian Air Force |
Miscellaneous Information
Born on 15 July 1924 in Bystřice nad Pernštejnem, Moravia, Czechoslovakia. He made his first attempt to cross the border to Slovakia in December 1939, but was detained and sent back; he finally succeeded in January 1940. He crossed the Slovak-Hungarian border a total of five times, but he was detained by the Hungarians, briefly imprisoned and then returned to Slovakia four times. On his fifth and successful attempt on 8 May 1940 he reached France via Hungary, Yugoslavia, Greece and Turkey and was assigned to the artillery. |
He survived the crash and, although injured, was taken for interrogation by the Gestapo. Died 23 March 1943 in the SS Infirmary in Prague-Podoli and buried in a mass grave in Ďáblický cemetery, known as "The Devil's Graveyard" |
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Last Operation Information
Start Date | 14-03-1943 |
End Date | 15-03-1943 |
Takeoff Station | Tempsford |
Day/Night Raid | Night (61% moon) |
Operation | Special Operations Executive- Operation Bronze, for Czechoslovakia |
Reason for Loss | Crashed near Munich |