Hidden Histories of WWIITV Show

January 1944, high above snow-shrouded northwest Europe, an extraordinary air battle was taking place. James Holland and his companion, historian Rowland White, explore what this largely forgotten engagement can tell us about the wider strategic air battle over Europe, about the men that fought it, and the machines they were using. Thanks to the advent of the P-51 Mustangs, Operation POINTBLANK was underway: the destruction of the Luftwaffe as an effective force in the west. This major operation was only made possible by the fighter escorts flying these new planes, and one fighter pilot in particular, Major Jim Howard, was about to make history by had single-handedly taking on the Luftwaffe at a ratio of Thirty to One without losing a single bomber from the stack he was protecting. This is the story of how a number of elements came together to bring skilled pilots and cutting-edge design together to achieve such remarkable results.