This is the story of the air war over Western Europe, told first hand by the American and German pilots and aircrew who took part. It spans the period between 1942 and 1945 and covers the encounters between the audacious Luftwaffe fighter pilots and the Fortress and Liberator bomber crews of the American 8th Air Forces flying from East Anglia. Many unique experiences are recounted from both the night and day bombing raids that were hurled against Hitler's war machine. What was it like to fly through the dense flak over the Ruhr and against the German Experten and to be hit by machine gun and cannon fire from Focke Wulf 190s and Bf 109s? How did so many badly damaged bombers manage to struggle back, against all odds, to their East Anglian bases? The author has sought the experiences of German fighter pilots, who explain how they stalked their prey in the sky over the Reich and how they pounced on their four engine victims from 12 o'clock high. This book contains vivid accounts of some of the most heroic actions in the history of air warfare and contains many previously unpublished action photographs