Gerard Bruggink

Who was Gerard Bruggink?

Gerardus Meinardus Bruggink was a Dutch pilot of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force. A recipient of the Military Order of William, he was one of only four Dutch pilots to dogfight the Japanese in the Battle of Java.

Born in Tubbergen, Overijssel, Bruggink followed a Catholic seminary. He met his wife, Corien, while serving in the Dutch East Indies and they were married in January 1942. A replica B-339C Brewster Buffalo was built in July 2008 and delivered to the Netherlands Military Aviation Museum in Soesterberg, the Netherlands, carrying the markings of the plane flown by Bruggink.