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The TRUE Story of... Charlie Brown, a WW II B-17 pilot........ Look carefully at the B-17 and note how shot up it is - one engine dead, tail, horizontal stabilizer and nose shot up.. It was ready to fall out of the sky. (This is a painting done by an artist from the description of both pilots many years later.) Then realize that there is a German ME-109 fighter flying next to it. Now read the story below. I think you'll be surprised .... 
Charlie Brown was a B-17 Flying Fortress pilot with the 379th Bomber Group at Kimbolton, England . His B-17 was called 'Ye Old Pub' and was in a terrible state, having been hit by flak and fighters. The compass was damaged and they were flying deeper over enemy territory instead of heading home to Kimbolton.
After flying the B-17 over an enemy airfield, a German pilot named Franz Stigler was ordered to take off and shoot down the B-17. When he got near the B-17, he could not believe his eyes. In his words, he 'had never seen a plane in such a bad state'. The tail and rear section was severely damaged, and the tail gunner wounded. The top gunner was dead. Blood was clearly splattered all over the insides of their turrets and fuselage windows. The nose was smashed and there were holes everywhere.
Despite having ammunition, Franz flew to the side of the B-17 and looked at Charlie Brown, the pilot. Brown was scared and struggling to control his damaged and blood-stained plane.
BF-109 pilot Franz Stigler B-17 pilot Charlie Brown
 
Aware that they had no idea where they were going, Franz waved at Charlie to turn 180 degrees. Franz escorted and guided the stricken plane to, and slightly over, the North Sea towards England . He then flew up closer and saluted Charlie Brown and turned away, back to Europe . When Franz landed, he lied and he told his German CO that the B-17 had been shot down over the sea. As for Charlie Brown, and his surviving crew... They told their incredible story to everyone during their debriefing...but were ordered never to talk about it.
More than 40 years later, Charlie Brown wanted to find the Luftwaffe pilot who saved him and his crew. After years of research, Franz was found. He had never talked about the incident, not even at post-war reunions.
Charlie Brown made the arrangements for Franz to meet him in the USA, at a 379th Bomber Group reunion, together with 25 people who are alive now.. (sons, daughters, grandchildren, relatives, etc.... Of the survivors from that B-17 crew)..... ........all because Franz Stigler did NOT fire his guns that day!
(L-R) German Ace, Franz Stigler... Artist, Ernie Boyett, ...and B-17 pilot, Charlie Brown.
When asked why he didn't shoot them down, Franz Stigler said, "I didn't have the heart to finish-off those brave men. I flew beside them for a long time. They were trying desperately to get home and I decided I was going to let them do that. Considering the condition they were in, I could not have shot at them. It would have been the same as shooting at a man in a parachute."
When they met, they realized that they lived within 500 miles of each other for the last 50 years. Both Franz Stigler and Charlie Brown died in 2008.
This is a true story! http://www.snopes.com/military/charliebrown.asp <http://www.snopes.com/military/charliebrown.asp>
THIS WAS BACK IN THE DAYS WHEN THERE WAS HONOR IN BEING A WARRIOR. SOLDIERS PROUDLY WORE UNIFORMS, AND THEY DIDN'T HIDE IN AMBUSH INSIDE A MOSQUE, OR BEHIND WOMEN AND CHILDREN, NOR DID THEY USE WOMEN AS SUICIDE BOMBERS TO TARGET AND KILL INNOCENT CIVILIANS. MY, HOW THINGS HAVE CHANGED!!! | | | | | |
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