The year following the enactment of the Unescorted High Altitude Bombing Campaign of the Eighth Air Force would prove to be incredibly deadly to those that fought in it. Moments like Black Thursday would be deciding times for airmen yearning to complete their 25-mission requirement. Men such as William Metzger Jr., Robert Femoyer, Archibald Mathies, and Maynard Smith would place their life on the lines in the most heroic manners miles above in order to save their own life and the lives around them.