Red Tails. Fact or Fiction?

[Stearmen]

Except for das Boot, which I really liked, which war film, about flying, would be recommendable in your opinion, talking accuracy, plot, suspense etc.

While not a movie, the mini series Piece Of Cake is good, great flying scenes! While made in England, even it has it's Hollywood moments. Such as , the American who flew in Spain before joining the RAF! [video=youtube;ZbeA504VzR8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbeA504VzR8[/video]

 

[Spitfire]

Ahhh yes. "Piece of Cake." Absolutely smashing brilliant! Got it on DVD and I watch it at least once a year! Good stuff! (And I love the book too!)

 

[Stand By]

Yes, I loved the book too (that and Goshawk Squadron - Peter Robinson's tale of a RFC squadron in WW1). I should give Piece of Cake another go. Not seen it since the 90s … I always thought his dialogue was brilliant.

 

[Monsoon]

I read a report about the Red Tails that said depending on how you might want look at it, they were either one of the best or one of the worst squadrons in the USAAF.

Either way, they were no better or worse then the all white squadrons.

 

[Stearmen]

I read a report about the Red Tails that said depending on how you might want look at it, they were either one of the best or one of the worst squadrons in the USAAF.

Either way, they were no better or worse then the all white squadrons.

They never lost a bomber, I believe they are the only squadron to have that record. To do that, they were under strict orders not to chase enemy planes, so no big score tally! Some of the squadrons stuck at the end of the bomber trails did not rack up big kills either, just nothing to shoot at. A friend of mine flew P-38s back in Tail End Charlie, he said, "you couldn't get nothing!"

 

[TXFlyGuy]

Except for das Boot, which I really liked, which war film, about flying, would be recommendable in your opinion, talking accuracy, plot, suspense etc.

How about "Twelve O'Clock High"? The movie, not the TV series. I liked them both as they showed the interpersonal relationships and the human side of the struggles of war.

 

[p51]

Yes, I loved the book too (that and Goshawk Squadron - Peter Robinson's tale of a RFC squadron in WW1). I should give Piece of Cake another go. Not seen it since the 90s … I always thought his dialogue was brilliant.

I watched the DVD set recently, and someday I plan on buying it. I taped it on VHS when it first aired and would watch it often. The book is even betterm but they couldn't have filmed everything in the book as they mentioned airplanes which today there are no flying examples of.

 

[Monsoon]

They never lost a bomber, I believe they are the only squadron to have that record. "

That's not accurate.

http://www.redtail.org/wp-content/u...e-Airmen-and-the-Never-Lost-a-Bomber-Myth.pdf

 

[Stearmen]

That's not accurate.

http://www.redtail.org/wp-content/u...e-Airmen-and-the-Never-Lost-a-Bomber-Myth.pdf

Thanks, doesn't really surprise me, we have been sold so much bad history over the years! Not that their record wasn't good. And people wonder why we have to reevaluate history every so often! Setting the record straight is not revisionist history! Thanks again.

 

[Cocker]

Except for das Boot, which I really liked, which war film, about flying, would be recommendable in your opinion, talking accuracy, plot, suspense etc.

Well, Spitfire already told you about Dark Blue World and the Battle of Britain. Both of them are really good, specially BoB. I love those old, non CGI movies!

Here's a couple I'd really recommend:

- Tora! Tora! Tora! : Not an aviation movie per se, but really great flying scenes in this one. The attack on Pearl Harbor is just crazy, really much better than the self titled movie of the same name.

- Bridges at Toko-Ri: Lots of great scenes, carrier operations on the USS Oriskany with F9F, AD-4, Sikorsky H-5 and so on. Plus, couple great actors.

- Flight of the Intruder: This one gets mixed feelings. The main story is not that good, they pretty much butchered the book. But the flying scenes, which represent a good part of the movie, are just totally awesome! Plus, it's pretty rare to see a movie about the Navy in the Vietnam conflict, and about A-6 Intruder crews, on top of that! This one may be my all-time favorite aviation movie.

- Catch-22: May be a "goofy" movie, but a very enjoyable one! Tons of flying scenes, 17 real flying B-25 used in the movie, all beautifully repainted and aged, the uniforms are really great. This is a must watch for aviation fans!

***SPECIAL MENTION***
- 13 Days. The movie is about the Cuban Missiles Crisis. It's a really good political movie, very tense and well done. Not an aviation movie, BUT, there's this one scene... The one when Cdr. Ecker and his wingman go for a low level-high speed recon flight with their F8U-1P over Cuba. This scene is just amazing, up to the details of the correct nose and serial numbers of the planes used on that flight IRL, the helmet paint scheme of the pilots, and so on. I recently spoke with a ex VFP-62 photographer's mate (PH2) which was with the unit at that time. Said the scene gave him goose bumps, and that he never saw anything so close to the real thing.

 

[Big J]

Well, Spitfire already told you about Dark Blue World and the Battle of Britain. Both of them are really good, specially BoB. I love those old, non CGI movies!

Here's a couple I'd really recommend:

- Tora! Tora! Tora! : Not an aviation movie per se, but really great flying scenes in this one. The attack on Pearl Harbor is just crazy, really much better than the self titled movie of the same name.

- Bridges at Toko-Ri: Lots of great scenes, carrier operations on the USS Oriskany with F9F, AD-4, Sikorsky H-5 and so on. Plus, couple great actors.

- Flight of the Intruder: This one gets mixed feelings. The main story is not that good, they pretty much butchered the book. But the flying scenes, which represent a good part of the movie, are just totally awesome! Plus, it's pretty rare to see a movie about the Navy in the Vietnam conflict, and about A-6 Intruder crews, on top of that! This one may be my all-time favorite aviation movie.

- Catch-22: May be a "goofy" movie, but a very enjoyable one! Tons of flying scenes, 17 real flying B-25 used in the movie, all beautifully repainted and aged, the uniforms are really great. This is a must watch for aviation fans!

***SPECIAL MENTION***
- 13 Days. The movie is about the Cuban Missiles Crisis. It's a really good political movie, very tense and well done. Not an aviation movie, BUT, there's this one scene... The one when Cdr. Ecker and his wingman go for a low level-high speed recon flight with their F8U-1P over Cuba. This scene is just amazing, up to the details of the correct nose and serial numbers of the planes used on that flight IRL, the helmet paint scheme of the pilots, and so on. I recently spoke with a ex VFP-62 photographer's mate (PH2) which was with the unit at that time. Said the scene gave him goose bumps, and that he never saw anything so close to the real thing.

That is an awesome scene in 13 days.

What about The Hunters?

 

[Cocker]

Hadn't seen it yet! I have the book on my amazon wishlist, though!

As for 13 Days, if you're interested in the subject, there's another good read I'd recommend, it's "Blue Moon over Cuba". The author, Kenneth Jack, is the PH2 I was talking about in my previous post. The book covers all operations from VFP-62 during the Cuban Crisis, with a lot of first hand accounts.