IN THE PRESENCE OF MY ENEMY - Framed Collector's Piece

20 December 1943 – rookie pilot Charlie Brown and the crew of B-17 Ye Old Pub manage to bomb the Focke-Wolf factory in Bremen despite severe damage over target.  Turning for home, the damage was starting to show and the straggler now became a magnet for encircling Luftwaffe fighters, who pulverised the already battered Fortress. Somehow, Brown managed to keep her in the air – just.

It wasn’t long before Franz Stigler’s Bf109 was spotted approaching at speed; all on board believed their days were now finally numbered. But Luftwaffe Ace Stigler had other thoughts. 

As he circled the wrecked B-17 he could clearly see the dead tail-gunner and other badly wounded men obviously unable to bail out. Compassion took the better part of valour.

Instead of shooting down the Fortress, Stigler escorted the bomber over the North Sea coast on a heading for England.

Stigler never reported the incident. Had he done so he would in all probability have been shot as a traitor yet many years later, through serendipity and good fortune, both men would meet again and become firm friends.

Released in 2012, we rarely come across copies of this superb print on the Secondary Market and our expert framing team have 'worked their magic' to create a stunning TWELVE signature collector's piece.

Personally autographed by veterans who flew with the U.S. 8th Air Force, included in the matting are the original signatures of a further four famous Luftwaffe Aces. The full list reads: