Other than the size of the engine and wing I'm generally proud of this piece.

A Ko'Jame K.R.A.F. Hy'Gong HFJZ-007 pulls down and away from a wounded Khan'Ning KN-73 Heavy Bomber after not shooting down the wounded aircraft, and escorted it out of hostile skies. The KN-73 is missing half its right wing with a propeller blade lodged in it, a large holes torn in the skin, leaking fuel, a heavily damaged Number 3 engine, and of the 10 crew members only 5 survived but with major injuries (Pilots, Bombardier, & Waist Gunners). The reasons behind the K.R.A.F. Pilot not shooting down the bomber remains unknown but is a testament to the honor and chivalry practiced by most pilots no matter what side they are on.

This picture was inspired by the song "No Bullets Fly" by Sabaton about the true story of a German fighter pilot named Franz Stigler and the crew of a B-17F called "Ye Olde Pub".

On December 20th, 1943 Before the bomber released its bomb load on Bremen, accurate flak shattered the Plexiglas nose, knocked out the #2 engine and further damaged the #4 engine, which was already in questionable condition and had to be throttled back to prevent overspeeding. The damage slowed the bomber, Brown was unable to remain with his formation and fell back as a straggler--a position from which he came under sustained enemy attacks. Brown's straggling B-17 was now attacked by over a dozen enemy fighters (a mixture of Messerschmitt Bf 109s and Focke-Wulf Fw 190s) of JG 11 for over ten minutes. Further damage was sustained, including damage to the #3 engine, which would produce only half power (meaning the aircraft had at best 40% of its total rated power available). The bomber's internal oxygen, hydraulic and electrical systems were also damaged, and the bomber lost half of its rudder and its port (left side) elevator, as well as its nose cone. Many of the gunners' weapons then jammed, probably as a result of loss of the on-board systems leading to frozen mechanisms (the ground crew did not oil the guns correctly), leaving the bomber with only two dorsal turret guns and one of three forward-firing nose guns (from 11 available) for defense. Most of the crew were wounded: the tail gunner, Eckenrode, had been decapitated by a direct hit from a cannon shell, while Yelesanko was critically wounded in the leg by shrapnel, Blackford's feet were frozen due to shorted-out heating wires in his uniform, Pechout had been hit in the eye by a cannon shell and Brown was wounded in his right shoulder. The morphine syrettes onboard froze, complicating first-aid efforts by the crew, while the radio was destroyed and the bomber's exterior heavily damaged. Miraculously, all but Eckenrode survived. Afterwards the limping bomber was spotted by ground crewman at an airfield including Franz Stigler who was refueling and re-arming his Bf 109 G-6 which he then took off and met the wounded aircraft where he could see the wounded crewmen, which than reminded him of what the squadron's commander Gustav Rödel said (which I use as a heading for my journals).

"If I ever see or hear of you shooting at a man in a parachute, I will shoot you myself."

Later Franz Stigler said after the war in an interview

"To me, it was just like they were in a parachute. I saw them and I couldn't shoot them down."

Twice Stigler tried to get Brown to land his plane at a German airfield and surrender, or divert to nearby neutral Sweden, where he and his crew would receive medical treatment and be interned the remainder of the war. Brown and the crew of the B-17 didn't understand what Stigler was trying to mouth and gesture to them and so flew on. Stigler later told Brown he was trying to get them to fly to Sweden. He then flew near Brown's plane in a formation on the bomber's port side wing, so German antiaircraft units would not target it; he then escorted the damaged B-17 over the coast until they reached open water. Brown, unsure of Stigler's intentions at the time, ordered his dorsal turret gunner to point at Stigler but not open fire in order to warn him off. Understanding the message and certain that the bomber was out of German airspace, Stigler departed with a salute. With immense effort and skill Charlie Brown was able to land successfully and safely at RAF Seething.

After the war, from 1990 to 2008, the pilots became very close friends after Charlie decided to try and contact the at the time unknown pilot. They then died a few months apart from each other in 2008.

This story to me, shows that war is not about ideals or politics, but about people and that the title of "Knights of the Sky" is a fitting and earned nickname for pilots who in these moments and others like it, show true chivalry, and I'm afraid that as the combat radius grows to miles and past the horizon, that these rare and honorable moments will fade into the past never to happen again.

Edit: If you want to listen to the song here's a good lyric video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x02g4-XT_VU&list=PLa34Q-DKFKp4Tzy8tl_jjwWCsH8T9OxBf&index=1

Video by Piscator on Youtube
Song by Sabaton and Nuclear Blast Records
KN-73 and HFJZ-007 by Me