Cvitan Galić was a Croatia

Croatia

Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...

n World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 fighter ace

Fighter Ace

Fighter Ace was a massively multiplayer online computer game in which one flies World War II fighter and bomber planes in combat against other players and virtual pilots...

.

Galić was born on November 29, 1909 in the village of Gorica near Ljubuški

Ljubuški

Ljubuški is a town and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, located in thewestern part of Herzegovina.-1971:28.269 total* Croats - 26.198 * Muslims by nationality - 1.812 * Serbs - 118 * Yugoslavs - 49...

. He finished grade school in the town of Sovići

Sovici

Gorica is a village in southwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is in the West Herzegovina Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is part of the Grude municipality....

. In 1927 he was transferred to the Yugoslav Royal Air Force

Yugoslav Royal Air Force

The Yugoslav Royal Air Force was formed in 1918 in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes and existed until Yugoslavia's surrender to the Axis powers in 1941 following the Invasion of Yugoslavia during World War II....

 and finished its pilot academy in Mostar

Mostar

Mostar is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the largest and one of the most important cities in the Herzegovina region and the center of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation. Mostar is situated on the Neretva river and is the fifth-largest city in the country...

 by 1932.

During the April War, he was in Kosor near Mostar. He flew to Sinj where he joined the newly formed Air Force of the Independent State of Croatia

Air Force of the Independent State of Croatia

The Air Force of the Independent State of Croatia, the Zrakoplovstvo Nezavisne Države Hrvatske was the national air force of the Independent State of Croatia during World War II, founded under German authority in April 1941...

. He joined the Croatian Air Force Legion

Croatian Air Force Legion

The Croatian Air Force Legion , or HZL, also known as the Croatian Legion, was a military unit of the Air Force of the Independent State of Croatia which fought alongside the Luftwaffe on the Eastern Front from 1941 to 1943 and then back on Croatian soil...

 and went to Fürth

Fürth

The city of Fürth is located in northern Bavaria, Germany in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. It is now contiguous with the larger city of Nuremberg, the centres of the two cities being only 7 km apart....

 near Nürnberg for special training before going to the Eastern Front as part of 15 (kroat.)/JG 52, a Croat staffel attached to Jagdgeschwader 52

Jagdgeschwader 52

Jagdgeschwader 52 of the Luftwaffe, was the most successful fighter-wing of all time, with a claimed total of more than 10,000 victories over enemy aircraft during World War II. It was the unit of the top three scoring Fighter aces of all time, Erich Hartmann, Gerhard Barkhorn and Günther Rall...

 of the Luftwaffe.

Galić had scored 38 confirmed air victories and had completed 2 tours with the Croatian Air Force Legion. He was awarded the German Cross

German Cross

The German Cross was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 17 November 1941 as an award ranking higher than the Iron Cross First Class but below the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross respectively ranking higher than the War Merit Cross First Class with Swords but below the Knight's Cross of the War Merit...

 in Gold on June 23, 1943. From Germany he also received the Iron Cross

Iron Cross

The Iron Cross is a cross symbol typically in black with a white or silver outline that originated after 1219 when the Kingdom of Jerusalem granted the Teutonic Order the right to combine the Teutonic Black Cross placed above a silver Cross of Jerusalem....

 1st Class and 2nd Class. He received the Ante Pavelić Award for Bravery which gave him the title of vitez (knight).

He was killed by Spitfires of the South African Air Force

South African Air Force

The South African Air Force is the air force of South Africa, with headquarters in Pretoria. It is the world's second oldest independent air force, and its motto is Per Aspera Ad Astra...

 on April 6, 1944 at Zalužani airfield near Banja Luka

Banja Luka

-History:The name "Banja Luka" was first mentioned in a document dated February 6, 1494, but Banja Luka's history dates back to ancient times. There is a substantial evidence of the Roman presence in the region during the first few centuries A.D., including an old fort "Kastel" in the centre of...

 when a bomb hit his Morane-Saulnier M.S.406

Morane-Saulnier M.S.406

The M.S.406 was a French Armée de l'Air fighter aircraft built by Morane-Saulnier starting in 1938. Numerically it was France's most important fighter during the opening stages of World War II....

. He had just moments earlier landed after completing a patrol and was in the act of leaving the cockpit when the attack occurred. He was buried at Mirogoj Cemetery

Mirogoj Cemetery

The Mirogoj Cemetery is considered to be one of the most beautiful cemetery parks in Europe and, because of its design, numbers among the more noteworthy landmarks in the City of Zagreb....

, but his grave was destroyed by the Partisans in 1945.

External links

• Cvitan Galić at Vojska.net
• Biographies : VLADO LENOCH at www.acc.af.mil