It was during this time that Hitchcock made a trip to Duxford, an RAF development facility, where he learned about a promising new American fighter produced solely for the British - the P-51 Mustang .

A P-51 Mustang flies over Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling ... As a B-17 formation headed for a Focke-Wulf factory a few dozen miles from Berlin, they were greeted by the stomach sinking sound ...