1996 was a bleak time. I was a kid, and I had a happy childhood, but Poland itself was struggling: 25% official unemployment, outdated infrastructure, corruption and collapsing post communism system. And yet, there was enormous potential and this restless energy waiting to be unleashed. Now it’s 2026. Thirty years later, two Polish F-35s feel like a symbol of just how far we’ve come, the ambition revolution