Brno, Jan 8 (BD) – Hugo Marom was born Oct. 9, 1928 in Brno. He was a Holocaust survivor and one of the founders of the Israel Air Force (IAF). Marom died on Sunday morning in Tel Aviv at the age of 89.
He was among the children, along with his brother Rudy, who got onto Sir Nicholas Winton’s last ‘Kindertransport’ in 1939, which helped save Czech children by relocating them to Great Britain during the Holocaust.
“Marom studied in Wales and later enrolled in the RAF air-training school. He and his brother returned to Brno in 1945 to find their parents,” the Jerusalem Post wrote yesterday.
“I dreamed of becoming a pilot back when I was a young boy,” Marom once said, according to IAF.
Hugo Marom met his wife at the Brno University of Technology (VUT) where he studied engineering, according to the Jerusalem Post.
He completed a pilot’s course in Czechoslovakia and then made his way to Israel during the War of Independence where he led air squadrons and was lauded as an outstanding pilot, Ynet news wrote.
Marom contributed to erecting a memorial to parents of Winton’s children at the Prague’ main train station.
Czech Television reported that Marom, a native of Brno, kept the Czech citizenship.
Photo: Israeli Air Force Avia S-199 of the 101st Squadron (1948). The Avia S-199 was removed from the Israeli Air Force battle roster in late 1949 being replaced by Spitfires and P-51 Mustangs. For illustration purpose only.
