Awesome reaction. Stigler recognized that the Pub was basically helpless. He had a commanding officer in North Africa who told his pilots "I will personally shoot any man who I hear has fired on a man in a parachute." He equated the American's condition to be the equivalent of being in a parachute. Not only did he not shoot them down, he flew close to them until they passed the German anti-aircraft batteries so they would not fire. Like most warriors, he understood that the enemy is the same as he is, fighting for their homeland. Even more amazing considering his only brother had been shot down and killed earlier in the war.
Thank you! I really enjoyed this. I don’t always get every reference especially considering history and the military…ha probably forgot more than I remember (been 22 plus years now) but I love the music and the story telling of these individuals and units etc in history, animated was pretty badass on top of it all. Also, I can really agree with the thinking (just because you can doesn’t mean you should). More Sabaton in the future. Much love.
@SargeStreams as a side note, shooting a pilot or crew who are parachuting from a plane is a war crime as well, so Stigler's officer had his moral compass set right too and was trying to keep them from getting into trouble.
One slight correction / addition ... As the two planes approached the coast where the anti-aircraft batteries were positioned Stigler dropped into trail position as if he was about to shoot from behind to down the B-17. My understanding is he did this to fool the AA battery into thinking he was attacking, so the battery wouldn't fire at them. The reason for simulating the attack was so there would be no report that he didn't attack. As mentioned in the video if he had been caught at the time with not downing the plane Stigler likely would have been executed. And you spoke described all of the important details about why ...well done!
@@SargeStreams The sad thing was the reactions Franz Stigler received after the incident became public. Some people from Germany called him a traitor, and his Canadian Neigbours called him a Nazi. People sometimes are xxxx...Have you ever heard of the Christmas Truce of 1914? Sabaton made an incredible Song and Video about this event. Cheers from Germany 👍
Sometime after meeting Franz, Charlie learned about a reunion of his old unit, the 378th Bombing regiment. He took Franz along, although Franz was hesitant, to the reunion. There, Franz was made an honorary member of the 378th, even if he kept saying he didn't do anything special. One of the wives of the Pub's crew turned round and told him: "Mr Stigler, look around you. These are men you saved. Today, they have kids, grandkids....wives... that they wouldn't have otherwise. And they have them because of you. Because you didn't fire on the Pub that December day."
You wondered what Brown and his crew were thinking -- they thought that Stigler's Me 109 was probably out of ammunition from the earlier battle. It wasn't until Brown talked with Stigler all those years later that he found out that Stigler's plane was fully armed. I just finished reading the book "A Higher Call" a week or so ago. Well worth the read.
If Franz Stiegler had been identified, he would have CERTAINLY been executed by the Luftwaffe command for treason. The fact he risked himself just shows how brave and honorable of a man he was.
One of the most heartwarming stories from Sabaton. Sometimes you just need to see the positive side of the human nature. I heard somewhere that Charlie B was involved with a re-union meeting with the bomber crew, their children and grandchildren to which Stiegler was invited and told that all these people you ser here live thanks to what you did that day.
From what I have heard Stiegler was first unsure if he should attend it but Charlie convinced him and then introduced him to everyone there saying if it had not been for him, no one there would have existed.
I recommend the Book A Higher Call which is where this song came from. Franz Commander told him that if he caught word or saw any of his pilots shoot at a man in a chute he would shoot them himself. Claiming you do this not for them bit for yourself. So that you could live with yourself later.
Franz decided that shooting at the bomber that couldn't maneuver or fight back would basically be the same thing. He knew that others wouldn't hesitate and so did what he felt was the honorable thing. He wasn't identified or he'd probably have been imprisoned or shot as a traitor.
Germans sometimes captured damaged bomber planes, fixing them up and using them for transportation. Then one fighter escorted the captured plane so it wouldn't be mistaken for an enemy so the Germans on the ground thought that Franz escorted a captured bomber.
also he only escorted them for this specific reason. Because the AA crews at the atlantic wall would have certainly shot them down unless they had a german paintjob or escort
You need to do all the "Animated Version" of Sabaton ;) , they are 5: This one, "The Red Barron", "Night Witches", "Lady of the Dark" and last but not least, "The First Soldier"
The 'cross' Oberleutnant Stigler missed out on was the Iron Cross. Ye Olde Pub would have been his 25th kill. Fortunately the Germans never figured out who escorted the B-17 out.
Actually, the "cross" referred to was the Knight's Cross, an air combat award given to aces of the Luftwaffe. Franz Stigler was actually two kills shy of getting the Cross, and at that time, Allied bombing had become so prevalent that Hermann Göering, the head of the Luftwaffe, had increased the value of shot-down bombers from 1 to 3. Essentially, had Franz fired on the Pub and killed it, he would have been awarded his due for making 'Ace.'
Thanks for your reaction. As a former Army attack helicopter pilot with combat experience who now flies jets, I can relate. I could have fired on many so-called “combatants”. I would have been justified but, it wouldn’t have been right… there is a code between aviators, no matter the country…
You should definitely see the photo they took of the plane. You'd wonder how it ever made it. They don't call them Flying Fortresses for nothing! In an interview, Franz said as he was lining up the shot, he saw the tail gunner bleeding profusely and couldn't do it. He not only escorted them to safety, but flew close enough to them, so that ground weapons couldn't fire, for fear of hitting him, too. What a guy!
Imagine spending your life thanking the soul that saved you that day wondering if he got shot like a dog when they got back.. The stuff those people had to put up with coming back home at the end was fucked up on all sorts of levels. At least this one got a happy ending.
That was the last kill he needed to get the knights cross. When he pulled up to the Pub, he remembered his commander's speech. His commander told his unit something to the effect of, "If I find out any of you are shooting at enemies decending on parachutes, I'll drag you out and k*ll you myself". Stiggler saw the Pub as no different than a parachute, this was shortly after my great grandfather was shot down in a B-17 frame 42-39868, she was unnamed, my great grandfather 2nd LT Bob Becker was one of 3 survivors and held as a POW the rest of the war. The government lost all his files after the war so it's hard to find any info.
Stifler's TO told them he would personally shoot any pilot who shot at a man in a parachute. Stigler considered this to be the same situation he later said
6:24 Fun Fact Franz was thinking at this moment "What in the hell do i have to do to get the pilots attention, i dont want to shoot him i want to lead him to safety" He then remembered that in flight training American Bombers were captured and flown back under Luftwaffe escort but they always flew right wing however in order to show that he had good intentions he flew left wing which was the American Escort system... He said in the book "I only had a few split seconds to think, i saw they were aiming at me, i dint know the guns were not working so i assumed the worst, then my commander popped into my head he always said that Americans escorted bombers in the left wing thats how you know its an american bomber and not one of the captured ones"....
Interesting thing: Mrs. Jovita Theren-Stigler is actually active in a couple of Sabaton fan groups. She commented on a picture I posted when I was painting the figures from the Sabaton board game. Also, yes, they have a board game.
Not sure if anyone else has said so in the comments but Sabaton does have a second channel called Sabaton History that goes into all of their songs with detail about the story and history behind each of them. Stigler got many threats and other things from his neighbors and even family from Germany after coming out about saving Ye Old Pug. And the line he says will always resonate with me. “L “They will never understand.”
I knew this would not leave you indifferent. Great reaction as always! P.S.1: Many civilians don't react to Stigler's farewell salute because it "flies" over their head. P.S. 2: Stigler was one bomber short of getting a well-deserved Knight's Cross at the time, and he showed how honorable he was by not getting a "medal of honor" in that way. P.S. 3: Stigler's daughter likes to watch reactions to this song and I hope she will leave a comment here too
What can I say!!! A story of these 2 Heroes, are amazing. 🛩️ Can't believe what Franz Stigler did to save an American in this terrible situation. Unimaginable.... The meeting after so many years, moved me 😥 2 friends 2 brothers 💙💙 sabaton are real storytellers in their Film with the Music....🤘💪 ThankYouSoMuch 🇳🇱
What many people don't know is that even in the Wehrmacht there were conflicts between the Waffen SS and the military. The Waffen SS were more extreme than the Wehrmacht. The problem at the time was that no Wehrmacht commander dared to question Adolf's orders, and with the Waffen SS it was not a question of whether or how to follow orders. The Wehrmacht pilots often had different teachers and training than those of the Waffen SS. This means that the Waffen SS were told: you are the best guys and it doesn't matter what the others say, do what you are told without questioning. In the Wehrmacht, soldiers were often blamed by veterans, so honor and so on. There is no question that both committed serious crimes. But you have to see the two separately, even if they served in the same country and under the same criminals. I can't even imagine how the English pilots felt when the fighter came at them. My ass would have been frozen, I think I would have even had to wash my clothes after landing and burn them so that no one would notice. ach sorry for my english (translate from google)
In about 12 hours form now it would be the 80th anniversary of no bullets fly between Charlie and Franz 🙂December 20 1943-2023 I will upload a 80th anniversary of this song tomarrow 🙂fly high Charlie and fanz 🫡
Sabaton did something similar with "Heart of Iron" and "Smoking Snakes". Former about how the German 7th Army (I think) evacuated civilians despite being ordered to induce civilian casualties during the German retreat to Berlin. Former is about the secret Brazilian involvement in WW2 (Brazil was formally neutral). Even the Germans recognized their heroism and awarded the Knights Cross to several fallen Brazilian soldiers, posthumously. For "Bismarck", Sabaton laid a wreath dedicated to both Royal Navy and Kreigsmarine sailors on a Christmas cruise. Joakim has said the war focus of the music is not to glorify war, but to pay respect for all the sacrifices made regardless of politics, because the sacrifices were often made by those that had the least to gain and with honest intentions
Interesting enough, heart of iron is technically about the 12th army who's orders were originally to attempt a breakthrough to relive the encirclement of Berlin after steiners failed counterattack however General Walther Wenck instead after being stopped outside of postdam decides to turn south and break the halbe pocket and link of with the 9th army and would breakout on April 28th before making a last stand at Tangermünde on may 4th until the 7th allowing over 100,000 soldiers and civilians to flee into allied territory
Another way you can think of this story is of humanity. The german pilot had lost his brother who was night fighter. Night fighters were sent up to get the bombers flying at night. So he lost his brother to a bomber crew shooting him down, and this pilot didn't hold the pain of loosing his brother against this b17. True humanity.
I'm from a neutral country (Switzerland) between my dad and I we both got differents political opinions but we know being soldiers is not always easy and not about ourselves but about our Commandment (since the military is an obligation for all able men). I'm from a part of Switzerland who was oppressed by another state, and revolution is really important to us both too.
Hey man, just discovered your channel. Wanted to say thank you for your service and I hope you enjoy Sabaton and what they stand for. As a history buff, nothing is better than blasting this and actually sharing stories about heroes that are worth remembering and that made a difference. Also, I completely agree with what you said about not hating an enemy combatant just because you are fighting. Fanatics aside, they are probably like you and me that just cares for their country and wanted to serve, or got conscripted and didn't have a choice to be there. Like this shows, every German soldier during WW2 wasn't a fanatical Nazi or genocidal maniac. Sure, there were a lot but there were still a lot of normal people too.
Bit late, but not sure if it was mentioned, but the Knights Cross that was mentioned was i believe, the highest decoration a pilot could earn back in Nazi Germany. A pilot would get it after claiming 30 aerial victories (fighters were worth 1, bombers worth 3) and Stigler was sitting right at 27. If he would've shot Ye old Pub down, he would've been given the high award, which not only carried a great deal of respect among his peers, but came with it a number of perks. So he essentially gave up a massive VIP treatment and glory to save those lives...a true warrior and man of honor.
I wish i could say it were always true that we didnt develop a sort of hatred for those we fought but speaking as a former Army infantryman during the height of the war in Afghanistan that hatred was very much encouraged.
apparently Franz originally tried to escort them to a neutral nation, but Charlie and the crew didn't know what he was saying So he escorted them to Allied territory instead.
If you or anyone else wants to hear the complete story of this song and more background information on franz stigler and Charles “Charlie” brown I highly recommend the book “A Higher Call” by Adam Makos
Had Franz done nothing, The Pub would've been an easy target for the anti-aircraft guns. On a separate note, if you want to take on the serious issue of veteran suicide, the band Death Dealer has a highly emotional song titled 22 Gone Today. I'd love to see your reaction as a veteran.
I'm a bit late to the party and the other commentators have said most of what there is to say. Just one little detail ".. the Fokke-Wulff plant in Bremen ..." "What?"(somewhere 2:00 to 2:30 minutes ) Fokke-Wulff was an aircraft manufacturer. The most important type produced there was the fighter Fw190, which together with the Bf109 as flown by Franz Stigler in this video was the backbone of the German fighter force at the time. The second group of bandits in this video is composed of that type. So the bombs released by Charlie had either damaged a factory central for Germany's air defence and/or killed skilled workers that were necessary to operate that factory. Let's also consider the possibility of missing the plant and killing random civilians in nearby residential areas. And Germany had scraped some of its dwindling resources to give Franz an aircraft so he could defend that factory and those people. I'm German, and my parents experienced allied bomber raids from the wrong end as kids. Don't get me wrong, I think in his own way Franz was one of our best. But if you were the judge at his court martial, you didn't need to be an evil Nazi to put him against a wall. I'm glad that didn't happen. I'm glad they met and became friends. Charlie passed shortly after Franz. I like to think that in this moment, the faint sound of a Bf109 could be heard, indicating that Franz had come to escort his brother to the other side. Thank you for a nice and relatable reaction. Ms Jovita Tern-Stigler has shown up in the comment sections of a number of No Bullets Fly reaction videos. Should this happen here, you know she is probably real.
I don't know if you will see this, but Franz Stigler refused to shoot the bomber down when he saw the crew trying to save their own. He said "For me it would have been the same as shooting at a parachute". In reference to his commanding officer who said: "If I hear of one of you shooting a man with a parachute, I'll shoot you myself". He also gave up the Knights Cross to save Charlie Brown. Its one of the most highest awards given, and if he downed that bomber he would've earned it. So he tried to motion for Brown to fly to neutral Sweden, but Brown didn't understand and continued to fly for England. Stigler kept his mouth shut of the incident till Brown came looking for him.
So, definetly go and check out Sabaton - The Night Witches animated story. Talk about combining bomming, military and Girl Power all together. The most vexing, enemy annoying, bone chilling, tormenting and outright CRAZY ASS, airforce, 588. Night Bombardement Regiment - The Night Witches.
Good reaction. Great tangent. People often forget that most militaries, especially during wartime, aren’t all volunteer. Most such militaries around the world are made up of a large percentage of conscripts. These are men and women who don’t even necessarily want to be there fighting. The soldiers aren’t the enemy. Sadly, they’re the ones on the front lines, so, yes, they’re the targets. And, sure, some of them… volunteer members who have a strong belief in the cause… may be “bad guys”. But a lot of those soldiers have just been thrown out there and they’re just doing what it takes to stay alive. It’s also why we have things like The Geneva Convention and need to treat POWs with humanity and respect. These are not people to be hated.
There so many more things to say about this incident. 1/ I believe there was a standing order to not spare any plane or even pilot in a parachute. If anyone had reported the incident Stigler would most likely have been court martialed and shot 2/ Stigler stayed with the B-17 to keep the AA gunners from shooting it down, not leaving it until they got to the coast. He first wanted them to land but they refused, he then wanted them to fly to Sweden as if was closer than Britain, but they didnt understand what he meant and continued to fly towards Britain 3/ When fighting in Africa, Stigler was told by his commander, Gustav Rödel, that if you follow this order to shoot down helpless enemies I will shoot you myself. You will not follow this order to save the enemy but to save your soul because you will never forgive yourself. Stigler has said that he remembered this when he was thinking about shooting down the bomber 4/ Brown told his commander when he was debriefed and to an intelligence officer. However he was ordered not to tell anyone and the whole thing was kept secret. There was two reasons for this, one was that they didnt want other bomber crews to think that the next german fighter would spare them, and the other reason was they they didnt want the enemy to be portrayed in a humane way. 5/ Everyone in the B-17, except the initially killed gunner survived the war, with the last member dying in 2016 6/ The reason Stigler didnt fire in the first place was that he saw that the tail gunner machineguns were pointing upwards, showing no one was using them. When he came closer he saw the dead tailgunner and when he got closer he saw that the mid section gunners were either injured or trying to save other wounded crew members. To me Stigler was a true hero and human who was in a war, but was still able to feel mercy
Sabaton is amazing! Just know I do my best to honor the songs artists etc… but I’m no history scholar etc lol… Greetings, 👋🏻 I cover a few Russian artists and I love them
Sub clicked but may I please be the a-hole here.. since You said it three times in a row; It's not "ek cetera" It's "et cetera". I know I shouldn't bother.. but still. If You're gonna speak Latin, do it right. ;) Also, great reaction - I enjoyed this.
Thank you for your reaction - very kind words
I loved the humanity shown. Such bravery. Much love!
@themadman616 Thank you. My father would appreciate your comment
Wow amazing to see you here, I love to see that you are looking at people reacting to your fathers story.
Much respect to your father 🫡🫡
They removed his sons youtube channel 😢
In Germany some called him a traitor. In Canada some called him a Nazi. In America with his brother he was okay.😊
Awesome reaction. Stigler recognized that the Pub was basically helpless. He had a commanding officer in North Africa who told his pilots "I will personally shoot any man who I hear has fired on a man in a parachute." He equated the American's condition to be the equivalent of being in a parachute. Not only did he not shoot them down, he flew close to them until they passed the German anti-aircraft batteries so they would not fire. Like most warriors, he understood that the enemy is the same as he is, fighting for their homeland. Even more amazing considering his only brother had been shot down and killed earlier in the war.
Thank you! I really enjoyed this. I don’t always get every reference especially considering history and the military…ha probably forgot more than I remember (been 22 plus years now) but I love the music and the story telling of these individuals and units etc in history, animated was pretty badass on top of it all. Also, I can really agree with the thinking (just because you can doesn’t mean you should). More Sabaton in the future. Much love.
Gustav Rödel is reputedly the officer. To train a person to fight is one thing, but he also taught how to be able to live with yourself afterwards
@SargeStreams as a side note, shooting a pilot or crew who are parachuting from a plane is a war crime as well, so Stigler's officer had his moral compass set right too and was trying to keep them from getting into trouble.
One slight correction / addition ... As the two planes approached the coast where the anti-aircraft batteries were positioned Stigler dropped into trail position as if he was about to shoot from behind to down the B-17. My understanding is he did this to fool the AA battery into thinking he was attacking, so the battery wouldn't fire at them. The reason for simulating the attack was so there would be no report that he didn't attack. As mentioned in the video if he had been caught at the time with not downing the plane Stigler likely would have been executed. And you spoke described all of the important details about why ...well done!
@@SargeStreams The sad thing was the reactions Franz Stigler received after the incident became public. Some people from Germany called him a traitor, and his Canadian Neigbours called him a Nazi. People sometimes are xxxx...Have you ever heard of the Christmas Truce of 1914? Sabaton made an incredible Song and Video about this event. Cheers from Germany 👍
The hardest choice to make as a soldier isn't pulling the trigger but knowing when it's a time not to.
Sometime after meeting Franz, Charlie learned about a reunion of his old unit, the 378th Bombing regiment.
He took Franz along, although Franz was hesitant, to the reunion. There, Franz was made an honorary member of the 378th, even if he kept saying he didn't do anything special.
One of the wives of the Pub's crew turned round and told him: "Mr Stigler, look around you. These are men you saved. Today, they have kids, grandkids....wives... that they wouldn't have otherwise. And they have them because of you. Because you didn't fire on the Pub that December day."
That’s really awesome stuff!
Onions... everywhere onions... 🥲😍
@@EbizzerHH here too....
@@EbizzerHH All these onion cutting ninjas. Damn them all...
@@EbizzerHH 😂🥰😭😭😭😭😭
You wondered what Brown and his crew were thinking -- they thought that Stigler's Me 109 was probably out of ammunition from the earlier battle. It wasn't until Brown talked with Stigler all those years later that he found out that Stigler's plane was fully armed.
I just finished reading the book "A Higher Call" a week or so ago. Well worth the read.
A Higher Call is one of my all time favourite books.
Love that book.
If Franz Stiegler had been identified, he would have CERTAINLY been executed by the Luftwaffe command for treason.
The fact he risked himself just shows how brave and honorable of a man he was.
A superb reaction, from a Brit in ye old UK. This story never fails to bring a tear to my eye. Humanity and humility shining bravely through.
Thank you. I'm glad you enjoyed. Much love
One of the most heartwarming stories from Sabaton. Sometimes you just need to see the positive side of the human nature.
I heard somewhere that Charlie B was involved with a re-union meeting with the bomber crew, their children and grandchildren to which Stiegler was invited and told that all these people you ser here live thanks to what you did that day.
Agreed!
From what I have heard Stiegler was first unsure if he should attend it but Charlie convinced him and then introduced him to everyone there saying if it had not been for him, no one there would have existed.
I recommend the Book A Higher Call which is where this song came from. Franz Commander told him that if he caught word or saw any of his pilots shoot at a man in a chute he would shoot them himself. Claiming you do this not for them bit for yourself. So that you could live with yourself later.
Franz decided that shooting at the bomber that couldn't maneuver or fight back would basically be the same thing. He knew that others wouldn't hesitate and so did what he felt was the honorable thing. He wasn't identified or he'd probably have been imprisoned or shot as a traitor.
"We are fighter pilots not butchers"
The book is awesome!
Germans sometimes captured damaged bomber planes, fixing them up and using them for transportation.
Then one fighter escorted the captured plane so it wouldn't be mistaken for an enemy so the Germans on the ground thought that Franz escorted a captured bomber.
also he only escorted them for this specific reason. Because the AA crews at the atlantic wall would have certainly shot them down unless they had a german paintjob or escort
This was an act of genuine og chivalry, Franz maintained a small piece of his own humanity that day, we should all remember our own humanity as men
if i hadnt seen Sabaton's Video, i would have prob never heard of this hero. So i love all they do.
You need to do all the "Animated Version" of Sabaton ;) , they are 5: This one, "The Red Barron", "Night Witches", "Lady of the Dark" and last but not least, "The First Soldier"
There are actually 6. The Christmas Truce animated story video is also good but should be seen after watching the official video.
@@mrlizardtx There is a live action so..... for me the animated version of it is "a bonus" :p
@@-Griffin- Agreed. Of the 6 animated story videos, the 5 you mentioned are the best versions to react to.
The 'cross' Oberleutnant Stigler missed out on was the Iron Cross. Ye Olde Pub would have been his 25th kill. Fortunately the Germans never figured out who escorted the B-17 out.
some might have.... but not every german was a rule-slave or fanatic N.zi back then....
Actually, the "cross" referred to was the Knight's Cross, an air combat award given to aces of the Luftwaffe.
Franz Stigler was actually two kills shy of getting the Cross, and at that time, Allied bombing had become so prevalent that Hermann Göering, the head of the Luftwaffe, had increased the value of shot-down bombers from 1 to 3.
Essentially, had Franz fired on the Pub and killed it, he would have been awarded his due for making 'Ace.'
Amazing story! All soldiers should aspire to the honor of Franz Stiglar.
the skill of the pilot flying a plane that damaged, it have to been mentioned.
Thanks for your reaction. As a former Army attack helicopter pilot with combat experience who now flies jets, I can relate. I could have fired on many so-called “combatants”. I would have been justified but, it wouldn’t have been right… there is a code between aviators, no matter the country…
You should definitely see the photo they took of the plane. You'd wonder how it ever made it. They don't call them Flying Fortresses for nothing!
In an interview, Franz said as he was lining up the shot, he saw the tail gunner bleeding profusely and couldn't do it. He not only escorted them to safety, but flew close enough to them, so that ground weapons couldn't fire, for fear of hitting him, too. What a guy!
Imagine spending your life thanking the soul that saved you that day wondering if he got shot like a dog when they got back..
The stuff those people had to put up with coming back home at the end was fucked up on all sorts of levels. At least this one got a happy ending.
I agree 💯 % here!
That was the last kill he needed to get the knights cross. When he pulled up to the Pub, he remembered his commander's speech. His commander told his unit something to the effect of, "If I find out any of you are shooting at enemies decending on parachutes, I'll drag you out and k*ll you myself". Stiggler saw the Pub as no different than a parachute, this was shortly after my great grandfather was shot down in a B-17 frame 42-39868, she was unnamed, my great grandfather 2nd LT Bob Becker was one of 3 survivors and held as a POW the rest of the war. The government lost all his files after the war so it's hard to find any info.
Stifler's TO told them he would personally shoot any pilot who shot at a man in a parachute. Stigler considered this to be the same situation he later said
There is an episode of Sabaton history that discuss the interaction in detail.
If you enjoyed this, try Bismarck. If you want to tear up, have a look at their motorhead cover of 1916.🤘. All the best from OZ .
Check the playlist 😉. More to come
6:24 Fun Fact
Franz was thinking at this moment "What in the hell do i have to do to get the pilots attention, i dont want to shoot him i want to lead him to safety"
He then remembered that in flight training American Bombers were captured and flown back under Luftwaffe escort but they always flew right wing however in order to show that he had good intentions he flew left wing which was the American Escort system...
He said in the book "I only had a few split seconds to think, i saw they were aiming at me, i dint know the guns were not working so i assumed the worst, then my commander popped into my head he always said that Americans escorted bombers in the left wing thats how you know its an american bomber and not one of the captured ones"....
Interesting thing: Mrs. Jovita Theren-Stigler is actually active in a couple of Sabaton fan groups. She commented on a picture I posted when I was painting the figures from the Sabaton board game.
Also, yes, they have a board game.
Thanks, I love board games!
Not sure if anyone else has said so in the comments but Sabaton does have a second channel called Sabaton History that goes into all of their songs with detail about the story and history behind each of them.
Stigler got many threats and other things from his neighbors and even family from Germany after coming out about saving Ye Old Pug. And the line he says will always resonate with me. “L
“They will never understand.”
I knew this would not leave you indifferent. Great reaction as always!
P.S.1: Many civilians don't react to Stigler's farewell salute because it "flies" over their head.
P.S. 2: Stigler was one bomber short of getting a well-deserved Knight's Cross at the time, and he showed how honorable he was by not getting a "medal of honor" in that way.
P.S. 3: Stigler's daughter likes to watch reactions to this song and I hope she will leave a comment here too
Thank you for the wonderful comments and that would be awesome if she did stop by! Much love
@@SargeStreamsI do think she has been by, you have a comment from someone called Stigler ☀️
She did@@SargeStreams
Think of it. You listen to your favourit band and find a song about your grandfather! How would that mess up with your brain. 😱
Absolutely wild! Awesome though!
What can I say!!!
A story of these 2 Heroes, are amazing. 🛩️
Can't believe what Franz Stigler did to save an American in this terrible situation. Unimaginable....
The meeting after so many years, moved me 😥
2 friends 2 brothers 💙💙
sabaton are real storytellers in their Film with the Music....🤘💪
ThankYouSoMuch 🇳🇱
I loved it! Glad you did as well.
AND YET PEOPLE IN CANADA CALLED HIM A NAZI THE IGNORANT PIGS
Sabaton lady of the dark animated story video is my favorite watch til end
More coming soon! 😀
What many people don't know is that even in the Wehrmacht there were conflicts between the Waffen SS and the military. The Waffen SS were more extreme than the Wehrmacht. The problem at the time was that no Wehrmacht commander dared to question Adolf's orders, and with the Waffen SS it was not a question of whether or how to follow orders. The Wehrmacht pilots often had different teachers and training than those of the Waffen SS. This means that the Waffen SS were told: you are the best guys and it doesn't matter what the others say, do what you are told without questioning.
In the Wehrmacht, soldiers were often blamed by veterans, so honor and so on. There is no question that both committed serious crimes. But you have to see the two separately, even if they served in the same country and under the same criminals.
I can't even imagine how the English pilots felt when the fighter came at them. My ass would have been frozen, I think I would have even had to wash my clothes after landing and burn them so that no one would notice.
ach sorry for my english (translate from google)
I am a former German soldier 2011 I quit. And I feel what you say !!
In about 12 hours form now it would be the 80th anniversary of no bullets fly between Charlie and Franz 🙂December 20 1943-2023 I will upload a 80th anniversary of this song tomarrow 🙂fly high Charlie and fanz 🫡
🫡
Sabaton did something similar with "Heart of Iron" and "Smoking Snakes". Former about how the German 7th Army (I think) evacuated civilians despite being ordered to induce civilian casualties during the German retreat to Berlin. Former is about the secret Brazilian involvement in WW2 (Brazil was formally neutral). Even the Germans recognized their heroism and awarded the Knights Cross to several fallen Brazilian soldiers, posthumously. For "Bismarck", Sabaton laid a wreath dedicated to both Royal Navy and Kreigsmarine sailors on a Christmas cruise. Joakim has said the war focus of the music is not to glorify war, but to pay respect for all the sacrifices made regardless of politics, because the sacrifices were often made by those that had the least to gain and with honest intentions
Interesting enough, heart of iron is technically about the 12th army who's orders were originally to attempt a breakthrough to relive the encirclement of Berlin after steiners failed counterattack however General Walther Wenck instead after being stopped outside of postdam decides to turn south and break the halbe pocket and link of with the 9th army and would breakout on April 28th before making a last stand at Tangermünde on may 4th until the 7th allowing over 100,000 soldiers and civilians to flee into allied territory
My eyes tears up every time I see this Sabaton video.
What a great story right? Awesome song!
@@SargeStreams Yes, and Sabaton knows how to tell the stories. 🙂
Another way you can think of this story is of humanity. The german pilot had lost his brother who was night fighter. Night fighters were sent up to get the bombers flying at night. So he lost his brother to a bomber crew shooting him down, and this pilot didn't hold the pain of loosing his brother against this b17. True humanity.
Its always the same in the world, as you shout out it cames the same way back. So respect others as they are
I'm from a neutral country (Switzerland) between my dad and I we both got differents political opinions but we know being soldiers is not always easy and not about ourselves but about our Commandment (since the military is an obligation for all able men). I'm from a part of Switzerland who was oppressed by another state, and revolution is really important to us both too.
Excellent reaction and more importantly, I deeply admire your outlook about compassion towards people in general.
Even in war man can be a MAN..not a simple killer..right..story like this proven that..btw great reaction from you mate..absolutly good..
I highly recommend the book "A Higher Call". It tells the whole story from the point of view of 2nd Lieutenant Charlie Brown.
Hey man, just discovered your channel. Wanted to say thank you for your service and I hope you enjoy Sabaton and what they stand for. As a history buff, nothing is better than blasting this and actually sharing stories about heroes that are worth remembering and that made a difference. Also, I completely agree with what you said about not hating an enemy combatant just because you are fighting. Fanatics aside, they are probably like you and me that just cares for their country and wanted to serve, or got conscripted and didn't have a choice to be there. Like this shows, every German soldier during WW2 wasn't a fanatical Nazi or genocidal maniac. Sure, there were a lot but there were still a lot of normal people too.
Much love. More coming in the future…and I bet outside of the circumstances I’m sure most are good people.
Charlie and his crew were on their FIRST MISSION EVER that day.
Christmas Truce. Another amazing story. Other than that I can recommend just about every other song they have.
Bit late, but not sure if it was mentioned, but the Knights Cross that was mentioned was i believe, the highest decoration a pilot could earn back in Nazi Germany.
A pilot would get it after claiming 30 aerial victories (fighters were worth 1, bombers worth 3) and Stigler was sitting right at 27. If he would've shot Ye old Pub down, he would've been given the high award, which not only carried a great deal of respect among his peers, but came with it a number of perks.
So he essentially gave up a massive VIP treatment and glory to save those lives...a true warrior and man of honor.
Still… I appreciate the comments. Much love! ❤️
This is the part that reminds me of a story Chuck Yeager told!
i like this video and this so much and i like your very kind Words. Best Regards from Austria.
I wish i could say it were always true that we didnt develop a sort of hatred for those we fought but speaking as a former Army infantryman during the height of the war in Afghanistan that hatred was very much encouraged.
apparently Franz originally tried to escort them to a neutral nation, but Charlie and the crew didn't know what he was saying So he escorted them to Allied territory instead.
If you or anyone else wants to hear the complete story of this song and more background information on franz stigler and Charles “Charlie” brown I highly recommend the book “A Higher Call” by Adam Makos
Had Franz done nothing, The Pub would've been an easy target for the anti-aircraft guns.
On a separate note, if you want to take on the serious issue of veteran suicide, the band Death Dealer has a highly emotional song titled 22 Gone Today. I'd love to see your reaction as a veteran.
Wow, they never fail to deliver that perfect blend of heavy and melodic 🤘 Next reaction - Nick Thurl end up dead 😍
Loved your reaction ❤️👍🏻.
Glad you enjoyed
I'm a bit late to the party and the other commentators have said most of what there is to say. Just one little detail ".. the Fokke-Wulff plant in Bremen ..." "What?"(somewhere 2:00 to 2:30 minutes )
Fokke-Wulff was an aircraft manufacturer. The most important type produced there was the fighter Fw190, which together with the Bf109 as flown by Franz Stigler in this video was the backbone of the German fighter force at the time. The second group of bandits in this video is composed of that type.
So the bombs released by Charlie had either damaged a factory central for Germany's air defence and/or killed skilled workers that were necessary to operate that factory. Let's also consider the possibility of missing the plant and killing random civilians in nearby residential areas. And Germany had scraped some of its dwindling resources to give Franz an aircraft so he could defend that factory and those people.
I'm German, and my parents experienced allied bomber raids from the wrong end as kids. Don't get me wrong, I think in his own way Franz was one of our best. But if you were the judge at his court martial, you didn't need to be an evil Nazi to put him against a wall.
I'm glad that didn't happen.
I'm glad they met and became friends.
Charlie passed shortly after Franz. I like to think that in this moment, the faint sound of a Bf109 could be heard, indicating that Franz had come to escort his brother to the other side.
Thank you for a nice and relatable reaction. Ms Jovita Tern-Stigler has shown up in the comment sections of a number of No Bullets Fly reaction videos. Should this happen here, you know she is probably real.
I don't know if you will see this, but Franz Stigler refused to shoot the bomber down when he saw the crew trying to save their own. He said "For me it would have been the same as shooting at a parachute". In reference to his commanding officer who said: "If I hear of one of you shooting a man with a parachute, I'll shoot you myself". He also gave up the Knights Cross to save Charlie Brown. Its one of the most highest awards given, and if he downed that bomber he would've earned it.
So he tried to motion for Brown to fly to neutral Sweden, but Brown didn't understand and continued to fly for England. Stigler kept his mouth shut of the incident till Brown came looking for him.
So, definetly go and check out Sabaton - The Night Witches animated story. Talk about combining bomming, military and Girl Power all together. The most vexing, enemy annoying, bone chilling, tormenting and outright CRAZY ASS, airforce, 588. Night Bombardement Regiment - The Night Witches.
Good reaction. Great tangent. People often forget that most militaries, especially during wartime, aren’t all volunteer. Most such militaries around the world are made up of a large percentage of conscripts. These are men and women who don’t even necessarily want to be there fighting. The soldiers aren’t the enemy. Sadly, they’re the ones on the front lines, so, yes, they’re the targets. And, sure, some of them… volunteer members who have a strong belief in the cause… may be “bad guys”. But a lot of those soldiers have just been thrown out there and they’re just doing what it takes to stay alive. It’s also why we have things like The Geneva Convention and need to treat POWs with humanity and respect. These are not people to be hated.
There so many more things to say about this incident.
1/ I believe there was a standing order to not spare any plane or even pilot in a parachute. If anyone had reported the incident Stigler would most likely have been court martialed and shot
2/ Stigler stayed with the B-17 to keep the AA gunners from shooting it down, not leaving it until they got to the coast. He first wanted them to land but they refused, he then wanted them to fly to Sweden as if was closer than Britain, but they didnt understand what he meant and continued to fly towards Britain
3/ When fighting in Africa, Stigler was told by his commander, Gustav Rödel, that if you follow this order to shoot down helpless enemies I will shoot you myself. You will not follow this order to save the enemy but to save your soul because you will never forgive yourself. Stigler has said that he remembered this when he was thinking about shooting down the bomber
4/ Brown told his commander when he was debriefed and to an intelligence officer. However he was ordered not to tell anyone and the whole thing was kept secret. There was two reasons for this, one was that they didnt want other bomber crews to think that the next german fighter would spare them, and the other reason was they they didnt want the enemy to be portrayed in a humane way.
5/ Everyone in the B-17, except the initially killed gunner survived the war, with the last member dying in 2016
6/ The reason Stigler didnt fire in the first place was that he saw that the tail gunner machineguns were pointing upwards, showing no one was using them. When he came closer he saw the dead tailgunner and when he got closer he saw that the mid section gunners were either injured or trying to save other wounded crew members.
To me Stigler was a true hero and human who was in a war, but was still able to feel mercy
Nice reaction.
funny you mentioned the red baron, since sabaton did a song about him too
I did a reaction to that song. Good song too!
Yes, that is where charlie brown comes from. The writer was quite a history nerd.
That's awesome. Thank you.
Sabaton is amazing group. Greetings from Russia.
Sabaton is amazing! Just know I do my best to honor the songs artists etc… but I’m no history scholar etc lol… Greetings, 👋🏻 I cover a few Russian artists and I love them
LOL...putting an Avro Lancaster pic on the thumbnail for a video about a B-17...I see what you did there. 😜💯😂
We learn history from sabaton. Famos Animation
We do!
Kiitos , sorry thank's.
You should See them live
@@AndrewMarkElliott would be really cool. 😎
Still can’t get through it and I’ve seen it maybe 30 times
franz stigler They will never understand
Umgekehrt hätten die Amis ihn gleich abgeschossen
🐕hey sarge ok lets see how you like this one ok im ready go
I hope you enjoy!
Sub clicked but may I please be the a-hole here.. since You said it three times in a row; It's not "ek cetera" It's "et cetera". I know I shouldn't bother.. but still. If You're gonna speak Latin, do it right. ;) Also, great reaction - I enjoyed this.
😊😊😊😊😊😊👍👍👍😎😎