The Americans' second year of the war saw the Eighth Air Force finally bombing Berlin, or 'Big-B' as it was known. The arrival in the theatre of an ever-increasing number of escort fighters, such as the P-47 Thunderbolt and P-51 Mustang, meant that the close-knit formations of bombers could roam further afield without the punitive losses suffered a year earlier. 'Little Friends' rode to the rescue...