Zeno’s Warbird Video Drive-In Very Big December 2008 Newsletter
Hello World War 2 plane fans —
You’re invited to drop by Zeno’s Drive-In www.zenoswarbirdvideos.com for this month’s holiday offering of five exciting World War II documentary films playing over Internet. December marks the record breaking introduction of four Premiers at the Matinee, and the return of one of our most popular films ever, “The 362nd Fighter Group on the Prowl Over Germany.”
Just like the day we opened on July 15, 1997, all the World War II aircraft videos playing on our site are showing for free, for your viewing pleasure.
Now showing “At the Matinée”
Profile of a Test Pilot – Premier! This film was developed by personnel at the Army Air Corps top secret Wright Field flight test facility during World War 2 to give pilots the low down on what to expect if they joined their aircraft testing program. As such, the film is both informative and engaging, with plenty of info about flight testing at that time, including climb, level flight, take off and landing, test instruments, and pilot responsibilities. But, there is much more . You also get a look behind the curtain at Wright Field at some of the rarest and most bizarre aircraft produced during World War II, including one-off prototypes. You’ll see a Bell P-63 Kingcobra doing aerobatic spin & stall tests, a Bell P-59 Airacomet jet fighter, a Plat-LePage XR-1A twin rotor helicopter, a tiny Bell XP-77 fighter, a Curtiss XP-60C with contra-rotating props, a weird hybrid B24/B-17, a beautiful 20-mm canon equipped test P-51A from the first Mustang production run, captured enemy aircraft, and more. This film is a real gem and beautifully preserved.
The 362nd Fighter Group On the prowl over Germany Exclusive Production. This video contains some of the most exciting color air action sequences to come out of World War II. Select 362nd Fighter Group P-47 Thunderbolt fighter/bombers were especially equipped with extra color movie cameras to capture thrilling ground and air attacks as they happened. These squadrons were tasked with striking targets inside Nazi Germany as the war against the Third Reich entered it’s final act in Spring, 1945. The result is unique from the cockpit views putting you in the middle of attacks on tanks, airfields, trucks, rail yards, bridges, trains, fighters, and more. You’ll even see antiaircraft fire arcing up from the ground, bursting around the big Thunderbolts as they make their low level strikes. You’ll see 362nd CO Col. Joe Laughlin and the pilots and crews of the 377th, 378th and 379th Fighter Squadrons and their aircraft in living color.
Operation Titanic: Shuttle Bombing Missions to Russia - Premier! The problem: key Axis strategic assets were located so deep in Eastern Europe that they either could not be reached by Allied bombers or involved a lengthy round trip that exposed aircraft to heavy German attacks. The solution was “Operation Titanic,” aka “Operation Frantic,” one of the most audacious and least known strategic operations of the war. During the Tehran Conference, 27 November - 2 December 1943, the the Americans, British and Russians hammered out plans for a “shuttle bombing” campaign. U.S. 15 Air Force bombers and fighters based in Italy would bomb targets in the East, land in Russia, refuel & rearm, and then hit another target on the way back. 8th Air Force bombers based in the UK did the same. The Soviets provided three bases in the Ukraine; heavy bombers at Poltava and Mirgorod and the fighters at Piryatin. The US provided material to substantially upgrade them. This film tells that story.
A-20 Havocs in Color with 416th Bomb Group Scrapbook – Premier! Exclusive Production Rare color footage of 416th Bomb Group A-20 Havocs (aka “Bostons”) taken before the Group transitioned to A-26s in the Fall of 1944 – plus many memorable still photos taken by 416 Group photog, Seargent Cachat. Includes over 200 pictures, including dramatic combat shots, detailed photo analysis of target strikes in France, Belgium, and Germany, and some of the most memorable crew photos we’ve ever seen.
Mastering the Thompson Submachine Gun, Part 6: Marksmanship – Premier! Originally developed as the .45 caliber “Trench Broom" for close-in fighting at the end of World War I, no other weapon is more surrounded by legend and mystique than the “Tommy Gun.” Used by both gangsters and law enforcement officers during the “Roaring Twenties”, it was frequently shown in period films and in posed photographs, its drum magazine and instant fire power making it immediately recognizable. During World War II, the Thompson came into it’s own for it’s originally intended purpose, making war along side the US Army and Marine Corps and was much prized by the Allies.
If you haven’t stopped by Zeno’s Drive-In before, we also feature 1940-45 vintage WWII Army & Navy films and pilot’s manuals on how to fly the F4U, F6F, P-38, P-39, P-40, P-47, P-51, P-61, TBF/TBM, AT-6/SNJ, B-17, B-24, B-25, A-20, A-26, B-26, B-29, and Stearman N2S . Alert! – Alert! There’s been an F-86 jet sighted over Zeno’s Drive-In!
That’s over 16 hours of rockin’ World War II props for free viewing over the Internet!
Check Six!!
Zeno
Zeno’s Warbird Video Drive-In /World War II Aviation Videos. Celebrating 11 years on the Internet 1997-2008 http://www.zenoswarbirdvideos.com
PS, If you have any concerns about using the RealNetworks RealPlayer to watch our videos, I recommend using the “RealAlternative” media player instead. (It’s what I use.) It will play RealVideo files just fine, is independently produced, a small download, and has none of the purported vices of RealNetwork’s RealPlayer. You can download the RealAlternative player here:
http://www.free-codecs.com/download/real_Alternative.htm
Online Vids: WW2 Test Pilots, Shuttling B-17s to Russia, Roaming P-47s, Tommy Guns, more
