New WW2 action movie by George Lucas features the P-51 plane

[StefB]

I'm really looking forward to seeing 'Red Tails' - a great looking big-budget action movie, opening this Friday in the U.S, about highly decorated African-American fighter pilots in WW2 and will feature over an HOUR straight of aerial combat action. The film is produced by George Lucas, (of Stars Wars and Indiana Jones fame).

And the plane featured is the P-51! For those lucky owners of this latest Bremont LE, this movie is right on time!

Red Tails - Movie Trailers - iTunes

[CaptLeslie]

Back In 1987, I was lucky to fly in the 302 TFS Red Tail squadron. We flew new F16C fighters. The squadron was reconstituted from WWII to honor the Tuskegee airman! When the squadron had its opening ceremony there were numerous Tuskegee airman there that we got to meet and they shared numerous stories worthy of a great film! The squadron is now located in Alaska flying F22 Raptors! I too am looking forward to the movie! Check Six! Cheers Jim

[CaptLeslie]

The wife and I were out at Luke AFB to update our ID's and then we are off to see Red Tails! This is one of the Red tails I flew 18 years ago! Cheers Jim.

[Noodlefish]

I'd not seen the F16C in that livery before. Very nice! Matches the MB1 perfectly!

M

[CaptLeslie]

I'd not seen the F16C in that livery before. Very nice! Matches the MB1 perfectly!

M

We never flew the aircraft painted with the whole tail painted red! This was only done for the static display to honor the history of the red tails! Painting a combat airplane red today would turn you into a missile magnet! On our combat aircraft we just painted a red strip on the top of the tail! Before the 302d put 291 on a pedestal she flew in a few air shows looking like this! Cheers Jim.

[napel]

I have always been a fan of aviation. That is one heck of a movie, but there was a ton of stuff left out.

[Janne]

Unfortunately, not much truth in the movie.

[napel]

Unfortunately, not much truth in the movie.

Not sure I agree with that. Like any historical movie, hollywood adds its own tid bits to make it interesting for the viewer. There were lots of truths in the movie especially historically, lots left out as well. Can't say I disagree on the action parts. Nonetheless awesome movie.

[Janne]

As they used CGI, the aircraft do many in real life impossible maneuvres. The P-51 lost the wings if certain maneuvres were made at high speed.
It had a narrow margin between the top speed and failure of the wings.
Many P-51's crashed because the pilot dived, went over the max recommended speed, and then lost the wings when he tried to pull up.

My father remembers very clearly the aerial fights, as he lived in an area where the US bombers and fighters flew on the route to targets in Bohemia and eastern Germany. There was a Luftwaffe airfield outside the town, and the aerial battles were very visible.
When the US flew over, the Air raid siren went off, and they had to leave home/school. He told me it was very interesting, the masses of bombers and fighters flying in one direction, to see the German fighters going up to meet them, the aerobatics, how the stricken aircraft dropped towards the earth.
Quite a few aircraft crashed around his town.
The remains of the US pilots ( usually not much) were buried and the graves exhumed by Gen. Pattons people. I guess they shipped the remains home.

As soon as the US aircraft met the Germans, the P-51 had to jettison the extra fuel tanks. The civilian population used to collect them, take the remaining fuel and use it, and to make stuff like throughs.
Highly illegal, of course, as the Germans demanded that the tanks were reported and given to them.

He told me that they could see which unit flew the p-51 depending how the ratio German/US got shot down.



He told me that many people felt that the Afro-American unit was insufficiently trained, and rushed to the front.

There are other aspects too, which I prefer not to disclose in public.

[Mike Pearson]

Evening all,

I saw Red Tails last night and the planes were filmed beautifully, the P-50's and 51's looked stunning but the movie was pretty poor.
George Lucas at his softest but the flying scenes on a big screen were fantastic.

Hope you are all well

Mike Pearson

PS Captain Leslie, I love your wrist shots!!!