Friendly fire WWII

[George Hopp]

Such incidents were covered up, as a result of the effort to keep the effectiveness of this automated AAA technology hidden from the enemy. If not covered up, then the explanation came easy: the pilot was flying where he should not have flown. It should be obvious from what I state here that this explanation does not do justice to the complexities of the there and then, putting the blame on the one who could no longer defend himself: the pilot.

Another example of this would be the orders for Sicily: If they're flying towards land they're ours. If they're flying towards the sea, they're the enemy. This was a bit hard on the C-47s who had dropped their sticks of troopers, and were returning to base.

Don't forget the informal anti-aircraft motto: If it flies it dies.