Since the dawn of the air power age, an irresistible and romantic image has formed in our culture of airmen sailing, quite literally, above the fray. To the mind’s eye, the words “air mission” still seem to conjure up images of a crystal clear day, blue skies, and fair weather. Nothing messy here–no mud or blood, and no dying grunts. Just handsome flyboys and their beautiful machines sailing off into the “wild blue yonder,” dropping their payloads, and returning to base for a well-deserved Scotch. It was the glamour arm of World War II.
Anyone who still clings to these notions, however, needs to look a bit more carefully at the U.S. strategic bombing campaign over Germany …
This is Part 1 of a two-part blog; click here to read Part 2 of Wild Blue Yonder. This post originally appeared on World War II magazine’s Front and Center blog; click here to read the rest of this post and find more blog entries on the Second World War by Rob Citino.
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