Polish WWII hero among COVID-19 victims honoured by NYT

A Polish WWII veteran has been listed among 1,000 victims of the coronavirus who have been honoured by the New York Times.

Jerzy Główczewski, pictured in 2017.

Photo: PAP/Marcin Obara

Jerzy Główczewski, a Polish fighter pilot who fought in World War II, died in New York last month, at the age of 97.

As the US coronavirus death toll nears 100,000, The New York Times listed the names of 1,000 people who have died of COVID-19 on its front page in a devastating tribute in its May 24 edition.

The front page of The New York Times for May 24, 2020 pic.twitter.com/d14JhFp4CP

— The New York Times (@nytimes) May 24, 2020

Główczewski was born in 1922 in Warsaw. During the war, he underwent flight training in Britain and was posted to fly Spitfires in the No. 308 "City of Kraków" Polish Fighter Squadron.

He moved to the United States in the early 1960s. He lectured at the North Carolina State University and pursued a career as an architect.

🏴 13 IV 2020 zmarł Jerzy Główczewski 🇵🇱:
✅ żołnierz #BrygadaKarpacka
✅ pilot #Dywizjon308
🎖 3x #KrzyżWalecznych
🟥 Po #IIWŚ #WładzeKomunistyczne odebrały mu licencję pilota (odzyskał ją po latach).#PolscyPiloci #PolskieLotnictwoWojskowe pic.twitter.com/N6eb4Wg1nM

— Instytut Pamięci Narodowej (@ipngovpl) April 14, 2020

(gs/pk)

Source: Polish Radio