YOU MUST.............

[hairy]

............Go to the Warehouse, DVDs on sale.
Historic airpower vol.1, vol.2, vol.3 and vol.4 for[glow=red,2,300]$6.99[/glow]each. These DVDs have 3 or 4 short (upto 40min) WWII information movies on them, such as;
-'Report from the Aleutians' - great P-38, P-40 and B-24 etc. footage.
- I can't remember the name of it, but a short wartime documentary showing what a test pilot does at Wright field. (has footage of a B-24 with a B-17 nose!)
- 'Memphis Belle'
- 'The Last Bomb'
- 'Tokyo Raid' - awesome B-29 and P-51 footage
- 'Bomber Command' - shows how bombing raids were planned and executed over Europe.

I also scored 'Fury of the Mustang' which covers the development of the P-51 from inception upto the P-82, awesome, awesome gun camera footage for $9.99!
One thing I learned from this video is that one of the chief designers of the P-51 was a German who worked for Willi Messerschmitt untill 1930!

[Dave Homewood]

Thanks for the tip Marcus, I will check out the local branch - I'd particularly like to get the Bomber Command one

So, that fact on the Mustang designer is a new one to me too. What was his name? I guess he may have worked on other NA designs too like the Harvard??

The Mustang is an interesting thing in that the world knows Reginald Mitchell designed the Spitfire, and many of us are aware of the likes of Sir Sydney Camm (Hurricane and much more) and Roy Chadwick (Lancaster, etc), but if anyone asked me who designed the Mustang, I wouldn't have a clue.

The same goes for the Merlin engine, perhaps the most important piece of military equipment ever designed - but who was the man/men responsible for it? I don't know. Odd, really.

[hairy]

Heres a bit more detail on those DVDs;
Historic Airpower Vol.1
- 'The Memphis Belle' - colour 40m, Combat footage of famous B-17 over Europe.
- 'Fortress of the Sky' - colour 25min, The design and construction of the B-17.
- 'Target for Today' - B/W 58min, The planning and execution of a days raids over Europe.

Vol.2
-'History of the Air Force, 1942-1943' - B/W 12Min, USAAF.
-'The last Bomb' -colour 40 min, Combat footage of B-29 raids over Japan (the footage of P-51s straffing targets of opertunity on the way home is awesome.)
- 'The Birth of the B-29' - B/W 20min, Details the construction of B-29s
- 'Target Tokyo' - B/W 21min, Follows the preparation and execution of the first B-29 raid on Tokyo. (from training in the US to combat footage over Japan).

Vol.3
-'Report From the Aleutians' - colour 43min, Wartime documentary about the Aleutians campaign inc. footage of P-38s, P-39s, B-24s and PBYs (the footage of a P-38 landing in a foot of water on the runway is unbelieveable)
-'Angels in Overalls' - B/W 15min, a short film on the P-38.
- 'Ceiling Unlimited' - B/W 17min, The storey of Wright Field, Dayton, Ohio the largest aircraft research centre in the world during WWII.
-'Reach beyond the Horizon' - colour 40min, The history of Edwards Air Force Base, post war and includes all of the X types.

Vol.4
-' Profile of a Test Pilot' - B/W 27min, training film for WWII test pilots. Shot at Wright Field. (includes footage of the B-24 with a B-17 nose)
-'Hook Down - Wheels Down' - colour 58min, official US Navy film on the history of the aircraft carrier, from the USS Langley to the USS Kennedy.
-'F-6F Hellcat, Portrail of a Fighter' - colour 6min.
-'Film Report - The US Aircraft Carrier in WWII' - B/W 8min.


Dave, I will get those names for you tonight.

[turboNZ]

Dave,

Here's some interesting info on the Merlin development
"...By 1932, it was obvious that the 745hp "Kestrel" engine, that had thus far been a bestseller, was coming to the end of its developmental life. Sir Henry Royce, about one year before his death in 1933, made a decision to develop a new engine using some of the experience of the Schneider Trophy winning 'R' engine. This new engine was initially known as the PV12 (private venture), and was entirely funded by Rolls-Royce up to that point. However, in 1933, the British Air Ministry agreed to finance the development of this engine, which was then termed the "Merlin...."

(taken from www.aviationshoppe.com/Rolls-Royce-Merlin.html)

Cheers
TNZ

[turboNZ]

and another great link all about the Merlins www.spitfiresociety.demon.co.uk/engines.htm

TNZ

[hairy]

Hi Dave,

The head of the P-51 design team was Raymond Rice but the Chief Designer was Edgar Schmode (? spelling), a Bavarian German who emigrated to America in 1930. Edgar Schmode was an original member of the Willi Messerschmitt design group.

[Dave Homewood]

Thanks Marcus. I'd never heard of either of them. Why have the Americans, who think the P51 was God's gift, not made a big name out of Rice or Schmode? Did they do something that saw them fall from favour I wonder? Schmode could have been remembered as their own R.J. Mitchell...

[Dave Homewood]

I am pleased to say that I have used your excellent tip and bought all four of the Historic Airpower DVD's. You're right, they are a real bargain and very interesting. So far I have watched just No. 1 and part of No. 2, but they are keeping me very occupied right now. Imhave the flu real bad, and this has been great to keep me going.

I also picked up The Flying Tigers (1942) with John Wayne for just $4.99, and I'm surprised how much real footage of Japanese bombers and fighters are in that, plus the aerial model work is really superb for those days.

[Dave Homewood]

Having seen more of these DVD's now, I am very impressed. I thought 'The Last Bomb' was particularly interesting, with cameras following a B29 and P51D raid on Japan. Man, that was a heck of a long route to fly to bomb Japan - why did they not base the B29's at Iwo Jima like the Mustangs? Some amazing combat footage, and all in colour.

Something I find interesting about these DVD's is there is no info on them pertaining to the manufacturer, and no copyright info - so I guess the footage is all public domain now? I had seen these films on the shelf at the Warhouse many times but never looked further than the front cover because they look so plaine and boring, but all in all they are pretty good.

[hairy]

I am glad you liked them, I just hope more people have been able to get them. (I just hate seeing bargins go to waste :

I hope your lurgy gets better soon too.

[Dave Homewood]

Cheers Marcus, I'm slowly coming right now. Damn tht's a bad flu going round!

Hey, what's the P40 in your avatar?

[hairy]

Its the OFMC one, NZ3009. I think it is now with the OS&R company. Check out my 'photobucket' link below and go to the P-40 album for more shots.