When Stigler came close to the American bomber, he saw that the plane was severely damaged. In fact, it was the most damaged B17 he had ever seen flying. The top of its tail was missing, the guns were hanging down, and the gunner seemed badly injured. When he saw how crippled the plane was, he immediately realized there must have been badly-injured people on board.
Stigler remembers the day and says, "I just could not shoot!" He flew up to the right wing and saw the pilot and co-pilot looking at him.
Needless to say,Brown was startled. "There, parked on my right wing was a German BF109. I just closed my eyes and shook my head."
Stigler crossed over to the bomber's left side to get the pilot's attention. He waved at Brown, hoping he could escort the plane to the Swedish border, but Brown decided to head toward England. Stigler said to himself "I hope you make it!" And their paths separated.
They were reunited in 1990 when they met for the first time so that Brown and the crew could thank Stigler for risking his own life to save theirs.
