On a date four days before Christmas in 1943, a heavily damaged American bomber struggled to remain airborne above wartime Germany. In control of the aircraft was a 21-year-old pilot. Nearly half of his crew were either wounded or deceased. Remarkably, this was their inaugural mission. Suddenly, a sleek and dark aircraft appeared behind the bomber—a German Messerschmitt fighter. Making matters worse, the German pilot was an accomplished ace, with the ability to annihilate the American bomber with a single pull of the trigger. What unfolded next would defy all expectations and eventually be recognized as the most extraordinary encounter between adversaries during World War II.
The narrative recounts the factual tale of the two aviators whose destinies converged in the skies on that fateful day. The American pilot, 2nd Lieutenant Charlie Brown, originally a farm boy from West Virginia, had risen to the rank of B-17 captain. Conversely, the German pilot, 2nd Lieutenant Franz Stigler, a former commercial airline pilot from Bavaria, aimed to steer clear of combat in World War II.
"A Higher Call" delves into the perilous missions undertaken by both Charlie and Franz. Charlie found himself contending with takeoffs in foggy English weather amidst the smoldering remnants of his compatriots' planes, anti-aircraft explosions so proximate that they illuminated his cockpit, and formations of enemy fighters encircling his aircraft akin to sharks. In contrast, Franz navigated challenges such as sandstorms in desert regions, a solitary crash at sea, and the astonishing sight of a thousand bombers, each bristling with eleven guns, poised for his assault. Ultimately, Charlie and Franz would find themselves gazing across the icy expanse of the heavens at each other. The event that transpired between them was deemed "top secret" by the American 8th Air Force. For Franz, it was an action he could never divulge, lest he face a firing squad. This extraordinary encounter would continue to haunt both Charlie and Franz for the subsequent four decades until, in their twilight years, they would endeavor to reconnect—an ultimate mission with the potential to forever alter their lives.
