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The legendary Jan Zumbach<\/a> is one of the few Polish aviators who were given the opportunity to perform combat flights on a Curtiss H-75 during the Battle of France. Unlike the Poles from the section which was tasked with providing cover for the SNCAC plant at Bourges and the pair of Polish pilots serving with GC III\/2, Lieutenant Zumbach took possession of his Curtiss in a more fortuitous manner.<\/p>\n Evacuated from Poland in 1939, at the beginning of his service in exile in France he had trained at CWL (DIAP) Lyon. In mid-May 1940, together with several other Polish airmen (Captain Krasnod\u0119bski, Corporal Karubin, Corporal Be\u0142c), he was assigned to one of the newly formed \u00c9tampes\/Ch\u00e2teaudun territorial defence sections (DAT), which flew the Morane-Saulnier MS.406. In the second half of May and early June, the unit operated mainly in the area of \u00c9tampes and Ch\u00e2teaudun, Chartres and Orl\u00e9ans. Around 1 June, the DAT \u00c9tampes grouping of sections was placed under the command of squadron GC 1\/55.<\/p>\n The fates of Zumbach and Curtiss H-75 A2 n\u00b0 107 became intertwined when, on 10 June 1940, he and other pilots of GC 1\/55 went to Villacoublay near Paris in order to evacuate aircraft that were still operational. The condition of the equipment which they had hitherto used left much to be desired. By this time, the Germans were already approaching Paris. There were quite a few modern or operational fighters left at the airbase in Villacoublay, including Bloch 152s, MS.406s, MS.410s and Arsenal VG 33s. Immediately after arriving in Villacoublay, Zumbach made two flights on a Bloch.<\/p>\n The following day he took over Curtiss H-75 A2 n\u00b0 107, which had been abandoned by the personnel of GC I\/4 when leaving the base ten days earlier. In total, between 11 and 17 June 1940 Zumbach performed seventeen patrol flights and staging flights on this aircraft. He provided cover for Villacoublay and Paris, and then for \u00c9tampes and Ch\u00e2teauroux. He made flights to Orl\u00e9ans-Bricy and Clermont-Aulnat, before finally completing his route in Bordeaux on 17 June, where he was ordered to evacuate to the UK. For the last week before the armistice of 25 June, Curtiss n\u00b0 107 was probably the personal aircraft of the commander of GC 1\/55, Commandant Rabatel. The aircraft was captured by the Germans and a year later sent to Finland, where it served with the designation CUw-556.<\/p>\n Curtiss H-75A2 n\u00b0107 was captured by the Germans at Bordeaux in undamaged condition, having been used by Jan Zumbach in GC 1\/55. In the photos we see it in German markings, a little later, when the original high mast of the antenna was replaced by a low one with a line. On the fuselage under the cockpit can be seen the emblem 2 esc. GC I\/4, applied in a smaller size, after the original emblem on the fuselage had been painted over. Photo: D. Pitcairn via J-L. Roba<\/em><\/p>\n Srebrne Curtissy w Arm\u00e9e de l’Air<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/armahobbynews.pl\/wp-content\/uploads\/70080-art-1200.jpg\")
A beautiful illustration by Piotr Forkasiewicz – boxart of the Arma Hobby Curtiss H-75 A1\/A2 kit no. 70080 in 1\/72 scale – shows Curtiss No. 107 piloted by Jan Zumbach over France in June 1940.<\/em><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/armahobbynews.pl\/wp-content\/uploads\/1511px-Jan_Zumbach-NAC.png\"){kind=spacer}
Jan Zumbach in the No. 303 Squadron Spitfire cockpit with Zumbach’s score and famous “Donald Duck” emblem. Photo: NAC\/Public Domain<\/em><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/armahobbynews.pl\/wp-content\/uploads\/Cu75-511-1200.jpg\")
Curtiss H-75A2 n\u00b0107 code 3 of leutenant de Montravel of the 2nd<\/sup> escadrille of GC I\/4, seen at Norrent-Fontes in late 1939. The insigna is\u00a0 still on the fuselage. Photo: J. Tardy de Montravel<\/em><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/armahobbynews.pl\/wp-content\/uploads\/Cu75-685-1200.jpg\")
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