Jan Eugeniusz Ludwig Zumbach (14 April 1915, Ursynów, Congress Poland, Russian Empire – 3 January 1986, France) was a Polish-Swiss fighter pilot who became an ace and squadron commander during the Second World War. During the Cold War, he became a mercenary in Africa and played a key role in forming the air forces of the breakaway states of Katanga and Biafra. Early years The son of Eugeniusz Zumbach and Halina née Gorzechowska from a family of landowners hailing from the region of Płock. Zumbach was registered as a Swiss citizen (his paternal grandfather of Swiss origin settled in Poland at the end of the 19th century). He joined the Polish Army in 1935 and served as an infantryman until 1936 when he transferred to the Polish Air Force. After graduating from flying training in 1938 he was posted to 111 Eskadra Myśliwska. Second World War Zumbach did not fly during the German invasion of Poland due to a broken leg from a flying accident during the summer of 1939. He returned to his unit only to be evacuated to France via Romania. While in France, Zumbach flew the Morane 406 and Curtiss Hawk 75 with GCII/55. On 10 June, he was one of several pilots shot down by Bf 109s, but escaped unscathed. On 18 June 1940, he travelled to England by boat and on 2 August was posted as one of the founding members of the newly formed No. 303 Polish Fighter Squadron. During the Battle of Britain, Zumbach scored eight victories and one probable, mostly against Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters. Zumbach was shot down by a JG 3 Bf 109 over Dover on 9 May 1941 when returning from a mission, but he was again able to bail out unharmed. Zumbach became one of the first Allied pilots to engage in combat with a German Focke-Wulf Fw 190, which he damaged; in return, his aircraft was damaged by a "single radial-engined fighter" on 13 October 1941. In December 1941, Zumbach was posted to 58 OTU, and in March 1942 returned to 303 Squadron as a flight commander. In May, he was promoted to squadron leader and took command of the squadron, a post Zumbach held from 19 May 1942 until 30 November 1943. During this period, Zumbach flew three Supermarine Spitfire VBs, serial numbers BM144, EP594 and EN951. All these aircraft carried the same code, RF-D, "RF"