Hello All --
You are invited to drop by Zeno's Warbird Video Drive-In
- This month "At the Matinee," we're featuring the B-29 & P-51 combat classic "The Last Bomb" and a stirring true story of courage under fire, "The Saga of the Carrier Franklin."
"The Last Bomb" vividly documents one of the almost forgotten chapters of World War II: the long range escorted B-29 bombing raids on Japan. Launched from hard won Pacific islands, these missions were over 3,000 miles round trip and could take 12 hours or more to complete. You'll also see the huge B-29 bases that were carved out on Guam, Tinian and Saipan. This rare late war color film, shot by combat camera men, documents all aspects of a XXI Bomber Command long distance daylight strike carried out at just 12,000' (!) on Tokyo in 1945. The mission is covered from initial planning stage by General Curtis LeMay and his staff, through fighter action and "bombs away" over target, to final touch down.
As an added bonus, there's plenty of spectacular gun camera footage taken by escorting P-51 Mustangs ranging over southern Japan seeking targets of opportunity in the air and on the deck. These Mustang sorties were some of the longest and riskiest missions undertaken by any fighters during World War II. Just imagine -- flying thousands of miles over trackless ocean in a single engine ship to take on the enemy over their own territory!
The inspiring documentary "The Saga of the Franklin" shows how the gallant officers and men of the distinguished Essex class carrier USS Franklin overcame incredible battle damage inflicted by a devastating bomb hit to save their ship. Remarkably, combat cameramen happened to be aboard ship to capture the action.
The film also contains rare and informative color footage of late war Vought F4U Corsair and Curtiss SB2C Helldiver carrier operations right off the coast of Japan. Perhaps most memorably, you'll see the officers and men of the USS Franklin first ably going about their daily business and then catapulted by fate performing selfless acts of heroism under extraordinary circumstances
If you haven't stopped by Zeno's Drive-In before, we also feature 1942-45 vintage WWII Army & Navy pilot training films on how to fly the F4U, SB2A, F6F, P-38, P-39, P-40, P-47, P-51, P-61, TBF/TBM, AT-6, B-17, B-24, B-25, A-20, A-26, B-26, B-29, and more. And all of our flicks are now available at our video store on DVD, including pilot's manuals for almost all aircraft with adifferent DVD "on special" every month.
That's over 13 hours of rockin' props for free viewing over the internet. See detailed charts, diagrams, and interior photos from original WWII pilot's manuals too. Finally, our "Control Tower" page has the largest collection of World War II Aviation links on the 'net
So drop your flaps & drop in! That's
Zeno