A total of 76 bombers from the Eighth Air Force are dispatched for a raid on Kiel, Germany, without fighters. Sixty make it to the target, but 22 are shot down, highlighting the need for fighter escorts. Among those killed that day was Brig. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest III, the first American general killed in combat during the war in Europe.
Airmen basic rarely go on to become four-star generals, but one who did retired last week after a 42 year career that saw him rise from a lowly slick-sleeve to the head of one of the Air Force’s most important major commands.