At the stroke of 2 p.m., the Central Music of the Army of the Czech Republic started playing and JAS-39 Gripen fighters flew over the Central Cemetery in Brno.
Son Jiří and daughter Zuzana and their families took part in the last farewell in the ceremonial hall of the Brno crematorium, which was filled to capacity, as well as a number of important guests, including the British ambassador to the Czech Republic Matthew Field and Cardinal Dominique Duka.
During a funeral with military honors, an honor guard stands guard, and the national anthem is played. Chief of the General Staff Karel Řehka will give a speech. At the end, a flyover of helicopters with smoke in the color of the tricolor is planned.
Public interest
The last farewell with military honors was crowned by a flyover of army helicopters and fighter jets over the Central Cemetery, which corresponded with the motto mentioned in Bočka’s part. Above the picture of the British Spitfire fighter plane is written characteristically Up to the stars.
The public’s interest in the last farewell was great. Hundreds of people crowded in front of the building of the funeral hall, on which a large screen was placed.
General Boček was played, among other things, by the evergreen Montgomery, the religious song Blíž k tob, Bože můj or the hymn A bell is ringing from the mountains. At the end, the Czechoslovak anthem was played, i.e. with a Slovak passage.
He fought for France, in Britain for the RAF
Emil Boček left Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia at the age of 16. He took part in the battles for France, then joined the RAF in Britain, where he worked as a mechanic. He completed his flight training in Canada and from 1944 participated in air combat in Spitfires in the Czechoslovak 310th Fighter Squadron in the British Air Force.
“It was good there. Those Spitfires were perfect machines. It wasn’t difficult, it was very good. Young people just want to know how many enemy planes I shot down and I always have to disappoint them when I say none.” joked Boček in one of the interviews, who accompanied Allied bombers over Europe or attacked German positions on the ground.
After the war, he became uncomfortable
After the war, he became uncomfortable as a member of the non-communist resistance, and in March 1946 he was dismissed from the army at his own request. He set up a motorcycle repair shop. After the communist coup, he worked at the company Mototechna, and later made a living as a turner until his retirement in 1988.
He met Queen Elizabeth II.
After the fall of the communist regime, he worked, among other things, in the Czechoslovak community of legionaries, where he became vice-chairman of the republican committee, or as chairman of the RAF Airmen’s Union in Brno. In March 1996, he personally met for a short interview with the British Queen Elizabeth II. during her visit to Brno accompanied by President Václav Havel.
Military honors and a letter from King Charles III.
President Miloš Zeman promoted Emil Boček to the rank of general. In May 2014, he appointed him brigadier general, three years later major general. In May 2019, he promoted him to the rank of retired army general. Emil Boček also received high Czechoslovak and British war decorations for his combat heroism. In 2010, President Václav Klaus awarded him the highest state award, the Order of the White Lion of Military Group III. classes.
Shortly before his death, Emil Boček also received a letter from the British King Charles III. The monarch addressed him with the warmest congratulations and also stated that “the indomitable bravery, determination and devotion to duty of Boček and his fellow soldiers will never be forgotten in Great Britain”.
At the age of 93, once again into a fighter jet
In Brno, where Boček lived, a tram was named after him, he is also an honorary citizen of his hometown. In the summer of 2016, he became one of the oldest Spitfire fighter pilots. He sat down at London’s Biggin Hill airport behind the stick of the fighter jet with which he participated in the battles against Nazi Germany in Britain. At the age of 93, he took control during the flight, spending less than 30 minutes in the air.
He was famous for his unique humor
Emil Boček did not deny his famous insight and humor even during the celebration of his roundhouses at the end of February this year. “I don’t celebrate anything, I’m satisfied when a person is healthy and gluttonous, as they say, so it’s good,” responded to the flood of wishes from Czech and foreign personalities.
The last farewell to war veteran, RAF pilot, General Emil Boček (†100) took place at the Central Cemetery in Brno.
Author: Lightning: Martin Přibyl