The One Airplane America Wasn’t Supposed to Talk About

Описание: The Soviet convoy wound its way through the Yugoslav countryside, red banners fluttering from trucks and tanks in celebration of the Revolution's anniversary. Lieutenant General Kotov and his men traveled with confidence—they were 70 kilometers behind Allied lines, it was 1944, and the German Luftwaffe had been driven from these skies weeks before.

Suddenly, heads turned skyward as distinctive twin-boomed fighters appeared over the ridge line, diving toward the column. Soldiers watched, confused, as the aircraft descended.

Some men began waving their red flags skyward, attempting to signal their identity. The aircraft locked on, showing no signs of veering off.

The lead fighter's nose erupted. Twenty-millimeter cannon rounds tore into the lead vehicles. Kotov's command car exploded in flames.

A few miles away at Niš airfield, the alarm klaxon wailed. Captain Koldunov sprinted toward his Yak-9. Soon, the Soviet fighters came screaming toward the attackers.

Through his gunsight, Koldunov froze. It didn’t make sense at all.

It wasn’t the black cross of the Luftwaffe—instead, he saw an unmistakable and supposedly friendly white star of the US Army Air Force.

---

Join Dark Skies as we explore the world of aviation with cinematic short documentaries featuring the biggest and fastest airplanes ever built, top-secret military projects, and classified missions with hidden untold true stories. Including US, German, and Soviet warplanes, along with aircraft developments that took place during World War I, World War 2, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, the Gulf War, and special operations mission in between.

As images and footage of actual events are not always available, Dark Skies sometimes utilizes similar historical images and footage for dramatic effect and soundtracks for emotional impact. We do our best to keep it as visually accurate as possible.

All content on Dark Skies is researched, produced, and presented in historical context for educational purposes. We are history enthusiasts and are not always experts in some areas, so please don't hesitate to reach out to us with corrections, additional information, or new ideas.