Between the waves and the clouds

From the memories of a naval officer, hydroplane pilot and Lecturer Ivan Konte

 

Bogdana Marinac

 

The soul-stirring life story of a naval officer and hydroplane navigator of the Yugoslav Royal Navy, a Partisan pilot and, later, a lecturer at the Department of Germanic Languages of the Faculty of Arts in Ljubljana, Ivan Konte, was marked by the ups and downs brought by the place and time in which he lived. Through his narrative, we can identify the causes that attracted young boys to the Navy and the way of life  and culture of seafarers before World War II, especially officers of the naval aviation profession, of whom about 47% were Slovenes. We can also follow the collective stories of seafarers and airmen during the period of World War II, which Ivan Konte, along with most of his colleagues, spent in Italian concentration camps, National Liberation Army units, and between the RAF Allied Royal Air Force units in North Africa , where the NOVJ also developed its aviation with the aid of the Allies. The most shocking and painful for him were the post-war years, when he found himself in various political prisons in Yugoslavia, especially on the island of Sv. Grgur, where he spent more than six years.

Although Ivan Konte's memoirs are the subjective narratives of an officer, educator, and left-wing man, with a sense of social weakness and justice, they are in line with the statements of many other seafarers and airmen. The book is based on the author's interviews with Ivan Konte, his companions and other seafarers, based on his written memoirs, and is supported by archival sources and literature.

 

Edited by: Maritime museum "Sergej Mašera"Piran, 2009 (The book is written in slovenian language. Summary  are in italian and english language)

 

 

The book is not available in the museum shop.