For as long as I can remember, I enjoyed drawing. One of my favorite subjects was airplanes. I was fascinated by the classic aircraft of World War II. I honestly don’t know that I put a lot of thought into what it was like to fly in one of the fighters or bombers that graced so many a piece of paper. Even with grandparents who experienced World War II in very real ways, the war was something I didn’t truly comprehend. While I never got really good at drawing, my appreciation for the wartime experiences of what was unequivocally the greatest generation has grown and developed. I have always been an ardent patriot and felt blessed to be an American and grateful for those who have fought for our country and for liberty around the world. I also like to think I’ve come to understand that the enemy in any given war is made up of individuals and many of those individuals are good people, exhibiting the same qualities relative to their people and their countries that we desire in ourselves and in our countrymen.
A Higher Call: An Incredible True Story of Combat and Chivalry in the War-torn Skies of World War II (ISBN: 978-0-425-25286-4) by Adam Makos and Larry Alexander is a unique story that tells the story of one of America’s greatest generation as well as a German fighter pilot who was doing his patriotic duty in fighting to defend his family and his country who came together for a few minutes over wartime Germany for an experience like no other. The book chronicles the life of Franz Stigler, the German ace pilot. He had other plans for life, but became one of Germany’s top pilots once war forced itself into his life. In the 480 combat missions he flew, he faced just about everything imaginable, including the loss of his closest kin. It also tells about American Charlie Brown, although I thought maybe not in quite the same detail. Brown did not have the long, distinguished combat career that Stigler did. He got off to a bit of a rough start, though, and his plane and crew were badly shot up in their first bombing raid over Germany. A couple of them lost their lives, and it seemed to the men in the plane that they should not have been able to fly back to their base in England. Brown more than once credited the fact that the plane stayed up to the hand of God, and I do not doubt him. As the American bomber flew away from its target, Stigler approached in his fighter. He could’ve easily been the straw to break the camel’s back, but he was himself amazed at how the plane stayed up in its battered state, flew in for a closer look, and felt a professional respect for his aeronautical compatriot behind the controls of the American plane. His long combat career and worthy mentors had taught Franz that his job was about protecting his homeland and the everyday people of his homeland (Franz, like many of the aviators, was ideologically against the Nazis), not needlessly killing, even when he had the enemy in his crosshairs. Instead of shooting the plane down for yet another kill, Stigler escorted the bomber past the German anti-aircraft defenses. This act was unprecedented and unrepeated. The book finishes with a description of Brown’s desire to find the German pilot who had been so kind to him and their subsequent opportunity to meet up and bring some understanding to people who had been on opposite sides of such an awful conflict.
I thought the book was a fascinating story and well worth reading. The authors had a lot more to say about Stigler, but that was likely a result of his being a pilot for so much longer. I thought the book painted an excellent picture of a German soldier who embodied a righteous patriotism and desire to protect his home and his family. Franz, avowedly anti-Nazi, was easy to like. Even though his story wasn’t as vividly told, Brown’s story was also interesting and it was clear that he, too, was a solid member of the best America has ever seen: he did his best to fulfill his duty for home and country. It was interesting to read about the almost inherent respect the pilots had for other pilots, regardless of which side they were fighting on. The airplanes of that era, while intriguing subject matter for artists, took genuine skill and true courage to fly. They were temperamental at best, death traps at worst. When these two pilots — who understood these risks all to well — met in the skies, the one who could’ve ended it all for the other, answered a higher call, one issued to us by God, to respect our fellow man, and we can all learn from this powerful example.
A Higher Call: An Incredible True Story of Combat and Chivalry in the War-torn Skies of World War II (ISBN: 978-0-425-25286-4) by Adam Makos and Larry Alexander is a unique story that tells the story of one of America’s greatest generation as well as a German fighter pilot who was doing his patriotic duty in fighting to defend his family and his country who came together for a few minutes over wartime Germany for an experience like no other. The book chronicles the life of Franz Stigler, the German ace pilot. He had other plans for life, but became one of Germany’s top pilots once war forced itself into his life. In the 480 combat missions he flew, he faced just about everything imaginable, including the loss of his closest kin. It also tells about American Charlie Brown, although I thought maybe not in quite the same detail. Brown did not have the long, distinguished combat career that Stigler did. He got off to a bit of a rough start, though, and his plane and crew were badly shot up in their first bombing raid over Germany. A couple of them lost their lives, and it seemed to the men in the plane that they should not have been able to fly back to their base in England. Brown more than once credited the fact that the plane stayed up to the hand of God, and I do not doubt him. As the American bomber flew away from its target, Stigler approached in his fighter. He could’ve easily been the straw to break the camel’s back, but he was himself amazed at how the plane stayed up in its battered state, flew in for a closer look, and felt a professional respect for his aeronautical compatriot behind the controls of the American plane. His long combat career and worthy mentors had taught Franz that his job was about protecting his homeland and the everyday people of his homeland (Franz, like many of the aviators, was ideologically against the Nazis), not needlessly killing, even when he had the enemy in his crosshairs. Instead of shooting the plane down for yet another kill, Stigler escorted the bomber past the German anti-aircraft defenses. This act was unprecedented and unrepeated. The book finishes with a description of Brown’s desire to find the German pilot who had been so kind to him and their subsequent opportunity to meet up and bring some understanding to people who had been on opposite sides of such an awful conflict.I thought the book was a fascinating story and well worth reading. The authors had a lot more to say about Stigler, but that was likely a result of his being a pilot for so much longer. I thought the book painted an excellent picture of a German soldier who embodied a righteous patriotism and desire to protect his home and his family. Franz, avowedly anti-Nazi, was easy to like. Even though his story wasn’t as vividly told, Brown’s story was also interesting and it was clear that he, too, was a solid member of the best America has ever seen: he did his best to fulfill his duty for home and country. It was interesting to read about the almost inherent respect the pilots had for other pilots, regardless of which side they were fighting on. The airplanes of that era, while intriguing subject matter for artists, took genuine skill and true courage to fly. They were temperamental at best, death traps at worst. When these two pilots — who understood these risks all to well — met in the skies, the one who could’ve ended it all for the other, answered a higher call, one issued to us by God, to respect our fellow man, and we can all learn from this powerful example.
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