One of the few successful Slovak pilots in the battles with Hungary in the spring of 1939, later a Slovak fighter ace. He was one of the most experienced Slovak fighters and went through all the conflicts of the independent Slovak Air Force.

On August 28, 1944, German soldiers of the so-called " General Otto's mission " were shot in the courtyard of Martin's barracks. It was this fact that has long been considered the main cause of the arrival of German occupying troops in Slovakia and thus the early, natural outbreak of the Slovak National Uprising. For several decades, the events in Martin have been distorted for various political reasons. In 1996, Jozef Považský's book "The End of the Legend of General Paul von Otto's Mission " was published, which provides an objective description of the incident based on eyewitness accounts and archival documents.

An uncensored painting by Ján Juraj Stanek.
"Iron Captain" Stanek will forever remain one of the most negative figures in the Slovak National Uprising. Even the false legends he spread so eagerly around him would not change anything.

An uncensored painting by Ján Juraj Stanek.
"Iron Captain" Stanek will forever remain one of the most negative figures in the Slovak National Uprising. Even the false legends he spread so eagerly around him would not change anything.