Uncommon Chivalry

5th March, 1944. Three Republic P-47 Thunderbolts race over the Pacific Ocean. They are flown by pilots Neel Kearby, Bill Dunham and Sam Blair. At this time, the American fighter aces are in a race to beat the American aerial victory count from the Great War, held by Eddie Rickensbecker at 26 aerial victories.

The three friends are determined to beat that in there Thunderbolts. As of now, the Thunderbolt is being over shadowed by newer pursuit fighter intercepters like the P-38 Lightning and P-51 Mustang. Not only are they going to break the record, but prove the Thunderbolt still has fight in it.

Just then, they spot 3 Kawasaki Ki-48 "Lily" bombers and make their attack from above.

The Thunderbolt had incredible dive capabilities, allowing it to dive in to attack and then pull back up without loosing too much speed. A technique that came to be known as "Boom and Zoom", which terrified the Japanese.

The three friends each picked a target and went in. Dunham and Blair each got their targets down, yet Neel only damage his. Then he did something very dangerous. He turned back, lowering his altitude, causing him to loose speed, and finished off the Ki-48. The Thunderbolt was slow at lower altitudes, making it a perfect target for Japanese fighters. As Neel attempted to regain altitude, he was shot down by an approaching Kawasaki Ki-43 Oscar. Seeing the attack, Dunham sped in to help and downed the Oscar, but Neel and his plane were nowhere to be seen.

Dunham and Blair search for him until the sun began to sink and their fuel got low. After returning to base, Dunham was determined to go back out but was told not to. They had to physically restrain him in order to stop him.

Nine months later, Dunham was flying over the Philippines when he spotted another Ki-43 Oscar. Without hesitation, he swooped in and opened fire downing the plane. As he pulled off, he spotted the pilot in his parachute. The Japanese were known for shooting American pilots in their parachutes and Dunham was ready to deliver some revenge. He lined up the parachute in his sight, ready to fire. In an interview, Dunham said this of what happened next:

"It was if the Lord put His hand on my shoulder and said Bill, don't do it."

He pulled off the attack before circling around. He spotted the Japanese pilot, who did not have a life jacket, in the water and flew low, opening the cockpit canopy. As he passed by, he threw out his own life jacket for the pilot and flew away.

A painting of this event, titled "Uncommon Chivalry" by David Hammond can be seen at the Seattle Museum of Flight.

...Because this needs to be 500 words:...

In war time, we do see a remarkable side of the human "spirit" to save a fellow man, whether a fellow brother in arms, or the enemy. These tales are often the most remarkable and sometimes even more heroic than any others.

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