On December 20, 1943, during World War II, American pilot Charlie Brown struggled to keep his badly damaged B-17 bomber in the air over Germany. His crew was wounded, and the plane was barely flying when German fighter ace Franz Stigler spotted them. Just one victory away from earning the Knight’s Cross, Stigler could have easily shot them down. Instead, moved by their helpless state, he chose mercy over orders. He escorted the crippled bomber safely past German defenses, saluted, and turned awa