Polish Air Force cadets on charity bike ride to UK, aim to help Ukraine

Five amateur Polish cyclists, including four cadets from the Polish Air Force University in the eastern city of Dęblin, have set off on a charity bike ride to the British Royal Air Force's Northolt Base in west London, with plans to raise funds for war-torn Ukraine along the way.

The tradition of the Polish Air Force University in Dęblin goes back to the 1920s.

Photo: PAP/Wojciech Pacewicz

Led by Maj. Grzegorz Buśko, the group left Poland on August 20 and plans to cover 1,600 km on bicycles, riding through Germany and the Netherlands.

Held under the motto “For Your Freedom and Ours,” the expedition aims to honour the memory of Polish airmen who fought in the 1940 Battle of Britain and of the victims of the war in Ukraine.

"Za Wolność Naszą i Waszą – For Your Freedom and Ours” – rajd rowerowy z #LAW do #Northolt wystartował! Przypominamy, że podczas całego wydarzenia trwa internetowa zbiórka pieniędzy dla Ukrainy - https://t.co/aKvGRXJkPR.
Za wszystkich uczestników rajdu trzymamy mocno kciuki! pic.twitter.com/DjxOM7ab6o

— Lotnicza Akademia Wojskowa (@LWojskowa) August 20, 2022

An online fundraiser is being held for Ukraine during the expedition.

The idea for the challenge originated in 2017, after a group of pilots from Northolt Base made a bike trip to the Polish Air Force Base in Krzesiny, a district of the western city of Poznań.

The tradition of the Polish Air Force University, popularly known as "The School of the Eaglets," goes back to the 1920s.

(mk/gs)