Quick Facts
Biography
Colonel Jaroslav Šrámek (3 May 1929 – 16 February 2015) was a Czechoslovak fighter pilot, active during the Cold War. He is known as the only pilot from the Czechoslovak Air Force ever to have shot down an enemy jet-propelled plane. He flew more than 2,000 operational hours during his career, which spanned 1951 to 1989.
Career
Early career
Šrámek had an interest in aviation from a young age, making model aircraft as a child. After graduating from secondary school, he attended the Czechoslovak Air Force Academy, a move which began his career in aviation.
Air battle over Merklín
On 10 March 1953, Šrámek had been flying close to the town of Domažlice in the west of Bohemia. His unit was assigned to patrol the edge of Czechoslovak airspace, close to the frontier with West Germany. Šrámek, who was flying a MiG-15, encountered two American F-84 Thunderjet planes above Merklín, a small village within Czechoslovak territory. The two American aircraft split, and one escaped. The remaining craft was piloted by Lt. Warren G. A. Brown, a veteran of the Korean War. No missiles were fired; Šrámek fired two cannon shots. The American plane sustained two hits, with the second one, from the N-37 cannon, causing a fire to break out. Brown ejected from the aircraft, which crash-landed in German territory, approximately 35 kilometres (22 mi) from the border, and survived.
Late career
Later in his career, Šrámek became the first Czechoslovak to fly the MiG-23. He flew in the Czechoslovak Air Force until the 1980s, where he piloted MiG-23 aircraft. He described the MiG-23 as the best aircraft he had flown, because "it was the fastest". Šrámek ended his career with a total of 2,353 flight hours.