Memorial Day - Charlie Brown and Franz Stigler - When Warriors Had Honor

(L-R) German Ace Franz Stigler, artist Ernie Boyett, and B-17 pilot Charlie Brown.

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.....

From Tranquilla II on the Back of Eddy Creek on Lake Barkley --- Memorial Day is upon us again. A day when most people tend to forget what it is truly all about and why we set it aside as a Federal holiday other than to grill, drink beer and enjoy the day off. However, two men recently came to my attention thanks to my friend and colleague Chuck Howell from over in East Tennessee that helps to place the importance of Memorial Day into perspective.

I had never heard of them before. Well maybe the one man's name rang a bell --- Charlie Brown --- when I consider the late great Charles Schultz's work and his characters in his famous Peanuts comic strip.

Two men.

World War II.

One an American -- Charlie Brown -- flying a B-17 or what remained of it. You can see the artist rendering above.

The other a German - Franz Stigler, who is sent out by his commanding officer to shoot the Americans down. (Sounds eerily similar to Snoopy and the Red Baron doesn't it?)

What ultimately happened that day resulted in a reunion of these two great warriors before they both passed away in 2008. This type of honor must be strange and foreign to the current generations who have fought "asymmetrical" wars yet at one time there was honor among most of us who served.

We have to remember, as Chuck writes, "...this was back in the days when there was honor in being a warrior...they proudly wore uniforms, and they didn't hide in ambush inside a mosque, or behind women and children, nor did they use mentally retarded women as suicide bombers to target and kill innocent civilians...how times have changed......"

And what follows is the rest of the story ...

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 all over the top of the fuselage. 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.

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 saluted Charlie Brown and turned away, back to Europe . When Franz landed he told the CO that the plane had been shot down over the sea, and never told the truth to anybody. Charlie Brown and the remains of his crew told all at their briefing, but were ordered never to talk about it.

More than 40 years later, Charlie Brown wanted to find the Luftwaffe pilot who saved the crew. After years of research, Franz was found. He had never talked about the incident, not even at post-war reunions.

They met in the USA at a 379th Bomber Group reunion, together with 25 people who are alive now - all because Franz never fired his guns that day.

When asked why he didn’t shoot them down, Stigler later said, “I didn’t have the heart to finish those brave men. I flew beside them for a long time. They were trying desperately to get home and I was going to let them do that. I could not have shot at them. It would have been the same as shooting at a man in a parachute.”

Both men died in 2008.

Franz Stigler

Charlie Brown

So, there you have it. This Memorial Day I would ask that each of you reading this take the time to simply reflect on the many men and women that have given their lives that we might live free in a country that is still envied by most of the rest of the world --- even if some in power these days don't see it that way.

And when our politicians this Memorial Day lay the wreaths on the graves of those who sacrificed it all so they could be politicians - and nothing much more - let's just remember that many of us still believe in the basic goodness of all our men and women in the military that stand up and fight daily for our freedoms.

For ever faithful my Brothers and Sisters. We stand by you.

Dr. Darryl

P.S. For those of you who need the references or question the validity of the story - go here:
http://www.snopes.com/military/charliebrown.asp