Requiem for a princess

摘要

It was spring 1944 and Allied heavy bombers, with their 'Little Friends', had been hammering away at 'Fortress Europe' since the beginning of the year. Round-the-clock strategic bombardment missions, in concert with low-level 'Chattanooga Choo Choo' strafing missions by Allied fighters, had all helped to soften up intended targets. Hitting railways, airfields and German emplacements, coupled with knocking the Luftwaffe out of the skies, were the main objectives. The battle-tested Lockheed P-38 Lightning and Republic P-47 Thunderbolts of the USAAF had recently been joined by a newcomer; the North American P-51B Mustang. With its 'long legs', the Mustang could stay with the bombers all the way to the target. Once the bombers had released their load, the long-range Mustangs were set free to roam, searching out and destroying targets of opportunity.