Air Power History Reviews War Wings
I wasn't sure quite what to expect when I volunteered to do a review of this book. Actually, I was harking back to boyhood memories of Dawn Patrol with Errol Flynn and David Niven. However, this book is a marvelous piece of work about a very different version of World War I in the air. The Films are not Hollywood writers' imaginings of air combat and dashing aviators' adventures in French bars and bistros when not on duty. All the films listed are black and white documentary films made during or just after World War I. Many were produced by the Army Signal Corps which was tasked to record the American war effort. Some were produced by the French or German military services during the same time period. The films referenced are located in the National Archives and Records Administration facility in College Park, Maryland.
The author breaks down the films by category. First are the "A" list films--those that are primarily aviation oriented. Second is the "B" list--those films that deal primarily with other aspects of the military effort but contain some aviation material. within the "A" list, Stewart further breaks down the films by major categories: Training, Construction of Aircraft, Overseas Movement, the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) in France, Other Combatants, and Post Armistice activities. Within these groupings he lists each film and provides the researcher with the film's name, which organization produced it, the number of reels and overall length in minutes, and catalog numbers. He then proceeds to break each reel down in sequence subsequently listing the activity displayed and providing the researcher a clue as to whether the shots are long or medium range shots or close ups.
I emphasize the word "researcher" because this book is not one for the ordinary Air Power History reader interested in aviation activities. Rather, the book provides specific pointers to serious researchers to help them locate relevant motion picture material about U.S. military and naval aviation activities during the First World War. It reminds us that we fought that war in the air with French, British, and Italian aircraft. Only American-built DH-4s saw combat and they were license-produced to the original British de Havilland design and specifications. They were powered by American designed and built "Liberty" engines.
The appendices are quite good. Appendix No. 2 is a useful chronology of U.S. military aviation during the war. Appendix No. 3 is a reproduction of Brig. Gen. William Mitchell's article "The American Air Service in the World war," originally published in August, 1919.
Review written by: Capt. John F. O'Connell, USN (Ret.) for Air Power History/Summer 2009
The author breaks down the films by category. First are the "A" list films--those that are primarily aviation oriented. Second is the "B" list--those films that deal primarily with other aspects of the military effort but contain some aviation material. within the "A" list, Stewart further breaks down the films by major categories: Training, Construction of Aircraft, Overseas Movement, the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) in France, Other Combatants, and Post Armistice activities. Within these groupings he lists each film and provides the researcher with the film's name, which organization produced it, the number of reels and overall length in minutes, and catalog numbers. He then proceeds to break each reel down in sequence subsequently listing the activity displayed and providing the researcher a clue as to whether the shots are long or medium range shots or close ups.
I emphasize the word "researcher" because this book is not one for the ordinary Air Power History reader interested in aviation activities. Rather, the book provides specific pointers to serious researchers to help them locate relevant motion picture material about U.S. military and naval aviation activities during the First World War. It reminds us that we fought that war in the air with French, British, and Italian aircraft. Only American-built DH-4s saw combat and they were license-produced to the original British de Havilland design and specifications. They were powered by American designed and built "Liberty" engines.
The appendices are quite good. Appendix No. 2 is a useful chronology of U.S. military aviation during the war. Appendix No. 3 is a reproduction of Brig. Gen. William Mitchell's article "The American Air Service in the World war," originally published in August, 1919.
Review written by: Capt. John F. O'Connell, USN (Ret.) for Air Power History/Summer 2009
Comments