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Skarżyński Stanisław Jakub (1899 - 1942) the pseudonym Żmudzin, Bończa. The aviator, lieutenant-colonel of the Polish Army. He was born on 1 May in Sieradz province. He was the chemist and Wacława's (maiden name Kozłowska) son. He was occupied with the education from 1908 till 1918. He passed the A level exam in 1919 in practical gimnazjum in Wrocław. He was the member of organiztion POW since 7 July 1916. He graduated from the POW secret juniors' and POW officer cadets' schools. In December 1918 he became the sergeant of headquarters at the 29th Regiment Kaniowskis' Shooters in Kalisz. After garduating the army schools he was appointed the ensign in July 1919. He fought at the Polish - Russian front and was wounded twice. He obtained the Silver Cross Virtuti Militari Class 5 for his courage and bravery during the battle in Radzymin. In August 1922 he was verified to the lieutenant degree. After the hospital treatment he was commanded to the Department of Ministry concerned with the Army Matters. He was directed to the pilots' school from there where in 1925 he obtained the pilot diploma. In January in 1927 he obtained the captain degree. Since February 1930 he worked in the Aeronautics Department in Ministry concerned with the Army matters as a reporter of Faculty Studies. During this period Skarżynski thought about the plan of flying above Africa. He took off on 1 February 1931 together with the lieutenant, the observer, Andrzej Markiewicz on the plane called PZL Ł -2. The flight was made above the balkan countries, the Mediterranean Sea, the lands of Africa, France and Germany. This flight was described in the book "25770 kilometres above Africa". The second feat he accomplished in 1933 when he flied above the Atlantic Ocean. This time he flied alone on the tourist plane RWD-5 bis. He took off from Warsaw on 27 April 1933, the flight above the ocean he started in Sait-Luis in Senegal on 7 May at 11 o'clock p.m. and on 8 May at 7.30 p.m. he landed on Maceio airport in Brazil after more than twenty-hour flight. He established then the international record of the flight length in the category of sports planes. During the return journey he first sailed by ship to Boulogne in France, from here he flied the RWD-5 plane and landed in ŁódŸ on 30 July. He was ceremonially welcomed on 2 Auagust on Mokotowski's Field in Warsaw. Skarżyński was appointed the Order Officer's Cross "Polonia Restituta". The special commemorative medal was made by the Legion of Aerial and Air-raid Defence in 1933. A year later Skarżyński was promoted to the major degree, and in 1936 he received Bilerot's medal from Federation Aeronautique Internationale. The memories about this flight he described in his book entitled "On RWD-5 bis through the Atlantic". After graduating the next airborne studies, he became as a lieutenant-colonel, the deputy commander of the 4th airborne regiment in 1938 in Toruń. With the outbreak of war with the Germans in September 1939 he assumed the chief post of the Headquarters in the Airborne Command and Air-raid Defence of "Pomorze" Army. During the war he sailed to Great Britain on "Batory" ship. In 1942 he was the chief of 300th and 301st Bomb Units in Hemswell. After gaining the superiors' agreement to take part in millitant flights over Germany, he took part in the millitant expedition over Brema on 25 June in 1942. After flinging down the bombs at this town the plane Wellington, that he flied with the others crewmen, was hit. Skarżyński had to, after taking the command of the first pilot, launch on the English Channel in the morning on 26 June. Skarżyński drowned, the rest of the crewmen managed to rescue themselves. Skarżyński's corpse was left on the banks after a few weeks. He was buried on Terscheling island in Holland. At the cemetary in Warta the symbolic grave was erected after the war. After the World War II plenty of streets, schools and scouts' teams were named after him. In 1968 in Warta at the building where he was born and where he lived the plaque was placed. In Małków, near Warta, the Chamber of National Recollection was created, in which there are lots of souvenirs connected with Skarżyński. He had a son, Maciej, from the marriage with Julia (maiden name Frenkiel), who he married in 1931.