The history of the World War II Luftwaffe bomber unit Kampfgeschwader 51 Edelweiss is documented here from its formation in 1937 until Germanys surrender in 1945. Flying He 111s and Ju 88s, KG 51 was always committed over the war zone hotspots and earned a reputation as a fire brigade on every front -- whether in France, over England, in the Balkans, or in the expanses of the Russian Front. Towards the end of the war, KG 51 also flew the legendary Messerschmitt Me 262 on operations. Based on war diaries, combat reports, and personal accounts, the author factually and vividly tells the story of KG 51 for the first time in English.