The Air Force Association presents Air Force Scrapbook, 1907-1957, a short film on the history of the Air Force for the Golden Anniversary celebration of the U.S. Air Force in 1957. The film presents footage of early planes in flight, some of the earliest military action by U.S. air forces, and scenes involving some of America’s best ace pilots up through the Korean War. The film opens with footage of early planes and more modern planes flying in the sky. The Wright Brothers show off their skid-mounted twin pusher propeller aircraft at Fort Myers, VA (01:58). Orville Wright and Lt. Frank Lahm take a test flight at Fort Myers. Old footage shows an aerial combat on the Mexican border in 1916 (04:04) as part of a U.S. operation against the forces of Francisco “Pancho” Villa. The film then shows scenes from WWI, including soldiers running across a field. American volunteers climbing into planes under the direction of the French Lafayette Escadrille (04:58); the planes take off. Footage shows the squadrons fighting German pilots in the air. Captain Edward V. Rickenbacker smiles while sitting in a cockpit (05:26). The “Flying Tigers” fly what appear to be Curtiss P-40s (05:56) in the early days of American action in WWII. In the Pacific, what appears to be Lockheed P-38 Lightning Fighters shoot Japanese fighters (06:48); Major Richard Bong smiles for the camera. Lockheed P-80 Shooting Stars fight over Korea; jet ace Captain Joseph C. McConnell climbs into the cockpit of a plane (07:22). Col. Francis “Gabby” Gabreski climbs into his aircraft. New Air Force jets fly patrol missions through U.S. air space (07:58). U.S. men build planes in France during WWI (08:30). Pilots prepare to fly during the Saint-Mihiel assault on 13 September 1918. The film then moves to WWII and shows the early bombing campaigns by U.S. and German bombers. A Curtiss B-2 Condor bomber flies sometime in 1920. James “Jimmy” Doolittle flies in foggy conditions. A Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is wheeled out of a hanger (11:28). Footage shows the attack on Pearl Harbor and the destroyed planes in the aftermath of the attack. General Hap Arnold (12:11) speaks to the camera. North American B-25 Mitchells take off from a U.S. carrier to attack Japan (12:50). B-17s take off from England (13:08); the film shows them bombing railyards in France. Bombers fly in formation during a daylight bombing mission and soon come under attack from German fighter planes. B-24 Liberators are shot down by the Nazis at the Ploesti Oil fields during Operation Tidal Wave. During the October 1943 raid on Schweinfurt, U.S. gunners shoot at German planes. Fighter escorts protect American bombers during a bombing mission (15:40). In the Pacific theater, U.S. planes take off from island runways (16:38). Paratroopers jump out of a plane. U.S. aircraft attack Japanese ships. Boeing B-29 Superfortresses take off on bombing raid of Tokyo (17:28); the film shows viewers footage of Mt. Fuji, the bombing of Japanese targets (countless bombs are dropped from the B-29s), and night footage of Japan on fire. Following the demobilization of the Air Force, many planes are grounded (18:38). A Convair B-36 Peacemaker flies in the sky (19:17); a squadron of B-36s are in flight. The film then recaps some of the peacetime operations of the Air Force. Footage shows U.S. planes flying during the Berlin Airlift mission (19:45). Air Force planes bomb a Hawaiian volcano to divert lava flows (20:45). Aircraft and personnel of the Air Force assist in the Texas City disaster evacuation, participate in Operation Haylift in 1950, and bring Hungarian refugees to the U.S. A young Charles Lindbergh stands near a plane (23:04). Viewers see clips of the first transcontinental flight in 1923 by Lt. John A. Macready and Lt. Oakley Kelly and the first coast-to-coast flight in 1924. Douglas World Cruisers fly around the world. The B-50 “Lucky Lady” takes off (24:18). Boeing B-52 Stratofortresses fly around the globe nonstop with in-air refueling. The film then shows one of the first in-flight refueling planes, the 1929 “Question Mark” (a modified Atlantic-Fokker C-2A). Footage then shows rockets being launched, Captain Charles Yaeger flying the Bell X-1, the first supersonic bomber—a Convair B-58 Hustler, and a Bell X-2 detaching from its mothership. The film concludes with footage of people researching and testing equipment, including equipment designed for space exploration.

This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com