Romualdas Marcinkus

File:Romualdas Marcinkus.Jonas Liorentas.Antanas Gustaitis.Juozas Namikas.Jonas Mikenas.Kazys Rimkevicius.near AMBO.jpg

Romualdas Marcinkus (from left first) near the AMBO plane

Romualdas Marcinkus (1907 22 July--1944 29 March) was Lithuanian pilot which participated in flight around the Europe in 1934 25 June.

Romualdas Marcinkus was Lithuanian football team coach and captain. This position he abandoned in 1939. Together with another five Lithuanian pilots – Jonas Liorentas, Antanas Gustaitis, Juozas Namikas, Jonas Mikėnas and Kazys Rimkevičius planed and executed flight around the Europe in 1934. Flight was conducted from temporary capital of Lithuania, Kaunas, because historic capital Vilnius was occupied by Poles. Fight patch extended over major cities of Europe, including Paris, London, Copenhagen, Moscow. In Rome pilots were greeted by Musolini.

From 1940 Romualdas Marcinkus served as pilot in France, later in Royal Air Force. In RAF he flew with Hurricane plane. In 1942 12 March participated in battle over La Manche and apparently in pursuit of the German battleship Scharnhorst his plane was shot down. Romualdas Marcinkus was captured by Nazis and sent to Stalag Luft III. On 1943 Romualdas Marcinkus and other 75 prisoners escaped from the prison. After the search operation conducted by Nazis, Romualdas Marcinkus together with other three were arrested near Danzig. Romualdas Marcinkus and 49 other captured prisoners were chosen and on 1944 faced firing squad.

In 2001 British Ambassador in Vilnius gave Romualdas Marcinkus’s unclaimed war medals to the family, a ceremony at which the RAF provided a fly-past of Harrier jets.

Reference

• Gražina Sviderskytė. Uragano kapitonas.2004