Excerpt from the new Zenith Press title, "Bombs Away: The WWII Bombing Campaigns Over Europe"

The Teune brothers in their Army Air Corps uniforms. John, second from right, was shot down over Ploesti, Romania (and his diary from that experience can be read in previous posts). Below is the final paragraph of chapter describing that campaign taken from John Bruning's brilliant new book, "Bombs Away: The WWII Bombing Campaigns Over Euroope."

"It was the resolution and courage of the American air crews that left the most enduring legacy. Where other air forces would have turned back in the face of such incredible opposition, men like Col. John Kane pressed the attack and refused to be dissuaded. The courage this requred cannot be underestimated. Flying below the treetops, hedghopping across the Romanian countryside, the pilots clearly saw what they were in for a s they approached the swirling inferno over Ploesti. They could not doubt their fate. That their hands remained steady on the controls, their hearts resolved because they believed in the mission's importance, left an example of heroism unsurpassed in American aviation history. Five men, including Colonel Kan, received the Medal of Honor for their valour that day. Their Balaclava-like charge at Ploesti sent a clear messge to the Germans: The Americans would not be dissuaded."

Taken from page 141 of John R. Bruning's new book, "Bombs Away: The WWII Bombing Campaigns Over Europe."