Franz Stigler

Oberleutnant Ludwig Franz Stigler (21 August 1915 – 22 March 2008) was a German fighter pilot and fighter ace in World War II.

He is best known for his role in a December 1943 incident in which he spared the crew of a severely damaged B-17 bomber. He escorted the plane to safety over enemy lines. The story was kept secret for many years, but in 1990 the two pilots finally reunited and were close friends until their deaths in 2008. Stigler died in Canada, where he moved after the war.

Early life
Stigler was born on 21 August 1915 in Amberg, Bavaria. His father was a World War I pilot/observer.

Stigler began flying gliders when he was 12, and in 1933, he piloted a biplane. He flew for Deutsche Luft Hansa (the predecessor of Lufthansa) before joining the Luftwaffe in 1940.

Military service
In the Luftwaffe, Stigler became an instructor pilot. One of his students was Gerhard Barkhorn, who went on to down over 300 planes in combat. Stigler himself flew 487 combat missions, downing 28 planes while himself being shot down 17 times (he bailed out six times and landed in a damaged plane 11 times). His brother, August, who was also a pilot, was killed in the crash of a Junkers Ju 88 in August 1940.

As a member of Jagdgeschwader 27 (JG 27) in North Africa as well as Europe, and of the Jagdverband (JV) 44 jet fighter squadron, the aircraft Stigler flew in combat were the Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Messerschmitt Me 262.

In North Africa, Stigler flew in the Schwarm made up of Oberleutnant Ferdinand Vögl, the commander of 4. Staffel, Oberfeldwebel Karl-Heinz Bendert, Oberfeldwebel Erwin Sawallisch and Stigler. At the time, most of the aerial victories claimed by II. Gruppe were allegedly achieved by pilots of 4. Staffel, of which 63 out 66 claims were attributed to these four pilots alone. In comparison, the claims filed by Vögl, Bendert, Sawallisch and Stigler far exceeded the number of aerial victories claimed by other units of JG 27 and raised significant doubt within the Luftwaffe. This Schwarm of JG 27 was prevented from flying together after 59-kill ace Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt reported that he saw them shooting into the dunes of the desert during a mission in which they claimed 12 aerial victories.

On 15 May 1943, Stigler was injured when his Bf 109 G-6 (Werknummer 15371—factory number) suffered engine failure and he was forced to bail out near the Milo Airfield, Sicily.

On 13 January 1944, Stigler was appointed Staffelkapitän (squadron leader) of 12. Staffel of JG 27. He succeeded Oberleutnant Werner Küffner who had been killed in action the day before. The Staffel was subordinated to IV. Gruppe of JG 27 under the command of Hauptmann Otto Meyer. On 13 May, Stigler was transferred and command of 12. Staffel was then given to Oberleutnant Ernst-Wilhelm Reinert. Stigler was then appointed Staffelkapitän of 8. Staffel of JG 27. He succeeded Oberleutnant Kurt Hammel who was transferred. On 15 August, 8. Staffel was renamed to 11. Staffel. When on 1 October, the Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of III. Gruppe of JG 27, Major Ernst Düllberg, was transferred, Stigler temporarily assumed command of the Gruppe. On 27 October, Stigler was transferred to Ergänzungs-Jagdgeschwader 1. Command of 11. Staffel was then passed to Oberleutnant Karl Kohl while command of the Gruppe went to Oberleutnant Peter Werfft.

B-17 incident
On 20 December 1943, Stigler met a B-17 bomber nicknamed Ye Olde Pub and its American pilot Charles "Charlie" Brown for the first time. Stigler had shot down two B-17s earlier that day and he soon caught up to a wounded B-17 flown by Brown. Lining up to finish the bomber and shoot it down, he noticed the tail gunner never moved the guns. Upon further inspection of the airplane, he saw through large holes in the fuselage a frantic crew trying to save the lives of their fellow airmen, and decided not to fire.

Stigler is quoted as saying "and for me it would have been the same as shooting at a parachute", in reference to a statement by his commander and mentor Gustav Rödel; "If I hear of one of you shooting a man in a parachute, I'll shoot you myself!". Stigler motioned to Brown to land his airplane in neutral Sweden because of the extensive damage. However, Brown didn't understand and decided to keep flying towards England. Stigler escorted the B-17 and its crew to the North Sea coast, protecting it from German anti-aircraft gunners (who recognized the silhouette of his BF-109 and held fire). Once they were over water, Stigler saluted Brown, then left to return to base.

Aftermath
Stigler never spoke of the incident as he could have been court-martialed and executed. Stigler moved to Canada in 1953 and became a successful businessman. Brown told his commanding officers, who chose to keep the incident secret. Years later, in 1990, Brown searched for the German pilot who let them live that day, and eventually the two pilots, along with the Pub crew, met face to face, half a century later.

Between 1990 and 2008, Brown and Stigler became close friends and remained so until their deaths within several months of each other in 2008.

Aerial victory claims
Mathews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found records for 26 aerial victory claims, plus one further unconfirmed claim. All of his aerial victories were claimed over the Western Allies on the Western Front or in North Africa and include five four-engined heavy bombers. It is likely that this list is short as following his encounter with Ye Olde Pub, Stigler claimed he lost his appetite for pursuing the Knight's Cross and stopped claiming individual victories. Further, upon surrendering to the allies, his log book was confiscated and never returned making it difficult to track his previous victories.

Awards

 * Honor Goblet of the Luftwaffe on 28 February 1944 as Oberfeldwebel and pilot
 * German Cross in Gold on 1 October 1944 as Leutnant in a Jagdgeschwader