EVEN IN WAR, THERE WERE LINES YOU DIDN'T CROSS. UNTIL SOMEONE DID. During World War II, American fighter ace Major Richard “Pete” Peterson witnessed something that would push him beyond the unwritten rules of aerial combat. A German fighter pilot was deliberately firing on helpless American bomber crewmen as they descended beneath their parachutes. These men had already lost their aircraft. They were defenseless, suspended thousands of feet above the earth, waiting to discover whether they would live or die. Peterson watched as the German pilot moved from parachute to parachute. Enraged by what he witnessed, Peterson attacked the German fighter and forced its pilot to bail out. But he wasn't finished. As the German airman descended beneath his own parachute, Peterson turned his guns on him and opened fire. The German pilot never reached the ground alive. Some of Peterson's fellow pilots feared his actions might invite retaliation against other American airmen. But Peterson believed those who hadn't witnessed what he saw couldn't understand his decision. War has a way of turning ordinary men into people they might never have imagined becoming. This is one of those stories that forces us to confront the uncomfortable reality that even those fighting for a just cause could commit terrible acts. History isn't always about heroes and villains. Sometimes it's about what war does to the human beings caught inside it. NEVER FORGET. 🎥 Footage Credit: Wings – Target: Berlin (Documentary) #WWII #WorldWar2 #WW2History #RichardPeterson #P51Mustang - @bitesizehistory08