R.C. Franklin, a World War II fighter pilot from Mojave, California, survived a five-year bombing campaign over Germany during the Second World War that saw the Allied forces carry out 173 air raids over the German port city of Bremen, dropping 5,500 tons of explosives. Among the survivors of the campaign was a 23-year-old Army Air Force captain, Rufus Franklin, who is officially recognized as having recorded three-and-a-half aerial combat kills or more, which would qualify him as an ace. Despite a legal issue regarding Franklin's legal name, he enlisted in 1940 at age 17 before America even entered the war. His son, Rusty, recalls his father's remarkable distance vision and tactical savvy.