My father fought in World War II. He was the radio operator on a B-17 bomber. Actually, it was three B-17 bombers. Though there were successful missions in between, all three planes were shot down. The first was hit after the target was bombed. Consecutive anti-aircraft bursts almost cut the plane in half from end to end, allowing the wings to actually flap like a bird. The pilot got it back to base, where he touched down with no landing gear. Inexplicably, all on board were safe, but the … [Read more...]