I enjoy them too.
"Thousands of airmen were shot out of the skies over Europe while engaged in operations against the Third Reich on targets in occupied territory. A very large number, sucessfully evaded capture.
An airman who gets away from his wrecked aircraft in enemy territory finds himself in a position which is unique among fighting men. To continue his type of fighting against the enemy, he must first return home, and to do this, he ussually begins his travels alone; often in a state of shock, and sometimes wounded. He knows that the alternative to a long, difficult and nerve racking evasion will be captivity, interrogation and possibly death.
Above all, he wants, and is constantly looking for help."
Carl A. "Tooey" Spaatz was an American World War II general and the first Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force.
"There are no words with which I can do justice to the aircrew who fought under my command. There is no parallel in warfare to such courage and determination in the face of danger over so prolonged a period, of danger that at times was so great that scarcely one man in three could expect to survive his tour of thirty operations... It was, furthermore, the courage of the small hours, of men virtually alone, for at his battle station the airman is virtually alone. It was the courage of men with long-drawn apprehensions of daily 'going over the top'."
-- Sir Arthur Harris, from Bomber Offensive.
