Very little was missing for Toruń to go down in World War II history as the site of one of the most spectacular escape attempts from a German prisoner-of-war camp. The former Toruń airfield, today part of the Pomeranian Aero Club, was not only a Luftwaffe training facility but also a place where the fates of POWs, Polish pilots, and Allied intelligence intersected. During the German occupation, work details from the prisoner-of-war camp Stalag XXA were regularly assigned to physical labor at the Toruń airfield. As recalled by one of the prisoners, their duties included clearing snow from the runway , maintaining infrastructure, and carrying out fieldwork around the airfield used by the Luftwaffe. It was during one of these work assignments that an event occurred which could have ended in a daring escape. Two officers — POWs from Stalag XXA — swapped places with fellow prisoners who were scheduled to go out on a work detail that day. The plan was simple and bold: at the right moment,...
This blog is dedicated to people who were imprisoned in Stalag XXA in Thorn in 1939-45. We would like to show you that in the shadows of the beautiful gothic city there is also forgotten history.