WWII Spitfire recon footage.

[prsman23]

https://www.youtube.com/embed/ie3SrjLlcUY

Neat story. US photo recon in British spitfires. This is part of a documentary about a flight surgeon during the war. He took footage of the airbase he was stationed on in England.

This particular clip is about a pilot who had a crash landing. They tracked him down and got a chance to interview him.

[Blanco]

That was fantastic
Too bad most of that generation is gone.

[shredder]

So much emotion in his face when he sees the footage. So much information about to pass from living memory.

[DougGuy]

VERY cool! Thanks for posting!

[mattw]

That was awesome... My Dad was a flight instructor as well as taught navigation and bombing on a B-25. I lost my dad about 1.5 years ago, life will never be the same.124237

[Beagle333]

Great video! Thanks!

[gkainz]

wow! Thanks for sharing that!

[JRPVT]

That was awesome...It brings back memories of sitting in the mess hall in the evenings watching old(WW2-Korea) film footage at the airbase I was at in the early 1970s'...so much lost over the years. I'm glad folks keep digging this stuff up. Dave

[DR Owl Creek]

That is very cool. Thanks for posting it.

Dave

[Freightman]

That is true bravery, no arms just him and his plane. SALUTE

[prsman23]

These guys had some stones that's for sure. I've seen some documentaries where they flew right through some tough AA flack and then turned around and did it again because they didn't think they got the shots just right.

[gkainz]

A very senior gentleman is in my flying club and still participates in our club activities. He doesn't fly any more, but his stories of flying Photo-Recce P-38s in Europe are mesmerizing.

[GLL]

AMAZING man !!! :)

Thank you for the reference.

Jerry

[gkainz]

oops - dup post on my part ... deleted

[Hardcast416taylor]

Not an airplane by any means. Every time I see WW 2 footage of light M-3 Stuart scout tanks I think of my late brother as a tank commander in one of these things. He came ashore in Normandy several days after the invasion. He went across Europe in an M-3 to V-E day besides having having 2 shot out from under him. He was on his way to Ca for duty in the Pacific theater when the war ended. He served as driver for Patton for several weeks as he had lost his tank to an AT gun and the driver had pneumonia.Robert

[9w1911]

my great uncle was flying those handsome planes over the Channel at 17!!! hitch hiked from Texas to Canada to join the RCAF

[Plate plinker]

That was super cool. Thought it was 2 mins long when I watched it. Just awesome.

Thanks

[nicholst55]

Wonderful footage; I'm sure it meant a great deal to the old pilot!

I read a book several years ago about an American fighter pilot who flew Spitfires in North Africa, and eventually transitioned to P-51s. He said that he much preferred the P-51B to the D, and said that he flew a B until the end of the war. I hadn't realized that Americans flew Spitfires in the USAAF until then.

[GabbyM]

Seriously good piece of film. Made me feel like I was right in the living room with him listening.
Great story.
I've watched hundreds of hours of WWII film. Read a stack of books. This clip is not to be missed.

[Charley]

Excellent video. Reverse lend-lease did happen, USAAC did fly some Spits. The MkXI (and all PR varients) were produced in fairly small numbers, most had no idea they existed. The fighter versions did indeed have a fairly short range being designed for the beginning as almost point defense fighters. Removing armament and increasing fuel capacity made a big difference in endurance. Most had no idea that PRU blue was an "official" color scheme as well. Much of the US PR work done in Europe and the Pacific involved the F6, which was the PR conversion of the P51 series.

[RED333]

Thanks so much for sharing.

[M99SavNut]

Had seen this one before. Brought tears to my eyes this time, too.


Thanks.

[GabbyM]

Excellent video. Reverse lend-lease did happen, USAAC did fly some Spits. The MkXI (and all PR varients) were produced in fairly small numbers, most had no idea they existed. The fighter versions did indeed have a fairly short range being designed for the beginning as almost point defense fighters. Removing armament and increasing fuel capacity made a big difference in endurance. Most had no idea that PRU blue was an "official" color scheme as well. Much of the US PR work done in Europe and the Pacific involved the F6, which was the PR conversion of the P51 series.

Reverse lend lease. That's a new term. We and the Canadians built Rolls Royce engines and finished aircraft for the Brits.
Piles of Hawker Hurricanes. I don't have numbers here but they didn't use the term arsenal of democracy for nothing. Tanks and trucks. Most support was given away to the Soviets.
Since FDR was a Communist after all. Fifty thousand plus aircraft. Quarter of a million Studebaker trucks. On and on it went. We invaded Iran to take over the rail road for shipping this stuff to them. Then at the end of WWII according to the Communist politicians. They were to powerful to fight.

[MaryB]

Way cool! And the emotions going across his face said it all.

[Charley]

Hurricanes were built in Canada in fairly large numbers. Not built in the US, though. Packard built a huge number of Merlins, though.

[Bzcraig]

That is amazing, thank you for posting it! I had a smile on my face the entire time I watched it!

[prsman23]

Just remembered the name of the program I saw on these planes and the whole operation.
It was called 3D spies on Nova.
If you have Netflix it's on there.

[WILCO]

That is amazing, thank you for posting it! I had a smile on my face the entire time I watched it!

Ditto for me!

[reloader28]

Cool story I'd seen before, but it was still great this time.

Wish I could remember what my paternal grandpa flew.
I thought it was a B-24 but couldnt verify the right plane on google. Maybe it wasnt.
It was a twin tailed bomber. I'm terrible on the compooter.

Grandpa joined the Air Corp to see the world, but they made him an instructor and he never left the states. He was ticked.
My maternal Grandpa was in the Pacific.

[M-Tecs]

Consolidated B-24 Liberator

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B-24

[reloader28]

Thanks.
I did see that one, and maybe thats the one.
For some reason I was thinking that it actually had like twin fuselage bodies behind the wings instead of one like normal planes, I just worded it wrong.
I guess that must be it though. I must be thinking of something else.

[M-Tecs]

Lockheed P-38 Lightning

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_P-38_Lightning

This is a fighter not a bomber. I am not aware of any twin fuselage US bombers. They also did some that used P-51 Mustangs but they didn't see service in WWII.

North American F-82 Twin Mustang

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_F-82_Twin_Mustang

[Charley]

Thanks.
I did see that one, and maybe thats the one.
For some reason I was thinking that it actually had like twin fuselage bodies behind the wings instead of one like normal planes, I just worded it wrong.
I guess that must be it though. I must be thinking of something else.

Possibly a P-61 Black Widow. Primarily a night fighter.

[reloader28]

Thanks guys.
I do know it was a B-24, for some reason I got the tails confused.

Sorry for the hi-jack.

[Charley]

My mom built B-24s at Consolidated's plant in Ft Worth, Texas. She was a riveter, worked in the fuselage waist position.

[fouronesix]

I too have watched that Spitfire recon documentary before but did enjoy it again!
NOTHING like the sound of a Spitfire or Mustang coming in low and fast :)