The Longest Day – aircraft

[QUOTE=Mark12]
It suffered the above damage at Palacious, Texas, on 15 May 1981. The pilot’s name was reported at the time as Gerald Martin. NX9BL of the then Confederate Air Force.

Gerald Martin was one of the CAF pilots selected to fly for the Battle of Britain film.

Septic.

How do you think the Spit would do against a Mustang?

[QUOTE=Mark12]
It suffered the above damage at Palacious, Texas, on 15 May 1981. The pilot’s name was reported at the time as Gerald Martin. NX9BL of the then Confederate Air Force.

Gerald Martin was one of the CAF pilots selected to fly for the Battle of Britain film.

Septic.

……..and was burned in the CWH hangar fire? Will she too be resurected in the future?

Cees

MK297

This is a Swanton Morley Spitfire, G.A.Rich/Film Aviation Services etc. Apart from the ‘Longest day’ it is recorded as used in ‘The Train’, ‘Triple Cross’ & ‘The Night of the Generals’.

No connection to Cliff Robertson.

It suffered the above damage at Palacious, Texas, on 15 May 1981. The pilot’s name was reported at the time as Gerald Martin. NX9BL of the then Confederate Air Force.

Mark

Was just checking the Warbird registry to make sure I was correct about ‘297, and found this image of her:

Can anyone tell me more about this accident?

G-ASSD WAS IN THE HANGAR AT SWANTON MORLEY AFTER THE FILM (LONGEST DAY) SHE WAS UP FOR SALE (£3,000). ON A FLYING CLUB OPEN DAY THEY PUMPED UP HER TYRES, AND IT FLEW A CIRCUIT (WHEELS DOWN)
IT THEN WENT TO CLIFF ROBERSON IN THE STATES (WHAT A BARGAIN)

Surely you mean the other Spit? MK923? MK297 went to the CAF eventually.

MK297/G-ASSD was I believe based at Biggin Hill after appearing in ‘The Longest Day’. As far as I know these shots were taken during one of the annual Air Fairs.

Photos via Brian Stainer APN.

Septic.

G-ASSD WAS IN THE HANGAR AT SWANTON MORLEY AFTER THE FILM (LONGEST DAY) SHE WAS UP FOR SALE (£3,000). ON A FLYING CLUB OPEN DAY THEY PUMPED UP HER TYRES, AND IT FLEW A CIRCUIT (WHEELS DOWN)
IT THEN WENT TO CLIFF ROBERSON IN THE STATES (WHAT A BARGAIN)

Cracking pic.

Glad you’re still around, Mk12.

MK297/G-ASSD was I believe based at Biggin Hill after appearing in ‘The Longest Day’. As far as I know these shots were taken during one of the annual Air Fairs.

Photos via Brian Stainer APN.

Septic.

Here are few additional ones :

Best regards,

Laurent

Same from me, I’m really glad to see that you are still with us Mark12.

And what a lovely picture it is 😎 Is your Spitfire photographic/general knowledge date base an endless pit? 😉 😀 😀

Great picture! Glad to see your still around Mark 12.

Dave

:Now, I’m pretty sure the two Spitfires used were MH415 and MK297, although feel free to correct (there was, I seem to recall, a third hired, but not used – MK923, which eventually found its way into the hands of Cliff Robertson, and was ably flown by Jerry Billing).

Anyone know more?

:confused:

Three Spitfires. A publicity still.

MH415 nearest, MK923 centre and MK297 to the rear.

Mark

I have an article somewhere about the making of “The Longest Day”. I believe the two Nords were sourced in France. They may have been the very same ones which appeared in “633 Squadron”.

Probably the 2 in Von Ryans Express as well.

I have an article somewhere about the making of “The Longest Day”. I believe the two Nords were sourced in France. They may have been the very same ones which appeared in “633 Squadron”.

The pair of Messerschmitt Bf 108s in ‘The Longest Day’ were really Nord 1002s, ie the French Bf 108-clone. Don’t know which ones, though.

Regards,

Jan

I was going to suggest the two that were/are in the UK (G-ASTG and G-ATBG, the latter owned and dispalyed for a long time by Lindsay Walton), but I have a feeling that the film was made too early for it to be them.

“The Longest Day” isn’t actually all that technically accurate (despite what the critics say). Here are just a few of the technical bloopers in the film –

* Landing Craft used in film are too modern
* Parachute dropping planes/glider tugs are Lancasters (never used in this role)
* During the strafing scene we see a point of view shot (alternated with footage shot from inside the Nord’s cockpit) which is far too slow (about 100mph at most ) giving the game away that it was shot from a slow flying helicopter not a 300mph fighter.
* The Sherman tanks seen in the movie
are post -war French versions with completely different turrets and guns to the 1944 versions.

I have noticed that a lot of the information given on the Internet Movie Database about planes etc is often wrong.

Colin

Colin, when you get right down to it, most war pictures are riddled with
inaccuracies about equipment. (especially aircraft)
I thought the Japanese aircraft in TORA, TORA, TORA looked pretty good.
In the movie PATTON, the Germans are equipped with PATTON tanks.
Speaking of the movie “PATTON”, two HE111 bombers were used.
I think they were borrowed from the Spanish Air Force.

sat2, Thanks.

It would appear that a few movie directors pay little or no attention if the aircraft featured in their film/s are of the correct type, markings etc. This may have something to do with the (hopefully untrue) assumtion that the ‘General Public’ doesn’t really care whether or not it’s a real Spitfire or Messerschmitt Bf 109, to say nothing of them being of the correct mark and painted in the correct markings. In the pre-CGI days, availability and cost would also have been prohibitive factors for historical accuracy.

However, some movie directors lack of knowledge of aircraft are, occasionally, hilarious. For instance, before Francis Ford Coppola began shooting “Apocalypse Now”, he contacted the RAAF in order to loan some of their B-52s! There’s also the example of the Finnish movie director, who, during the early 1980s, was about to shoot a film on the 1939-1940 Winter War. Regarding the aircraft to be used in the movie, he saw no problems in employing the Saab 35 Drakens and MiG-21s of the Finnish Air Force! 😮

Regards,

Jan

“The Longest Day” isn’t actually all that technically accurate (despite what the critics say). Here are just a few of the technical bloopers in the film –

* Landing Craft used in film are too modern
* Parachute dropping planes/glider tugs are Lancasters (never used in this role)
* During the strafing scene we see a point of view shot (alternated with footage shot from inside the Nord’s cockpit) which is far too slow (about 100mph at most ) giving the game away that it was shot from a slow flying helicopter not a 300mph fighter.
* The Sherman tanks seen in the movie
are post -war French versions with completely different turrets and guns to the 1944 versions.

I have noticed that a lot of the information given on the Internet Movie Database about planes etc is often wrong.

Colin

The aircraft seen flying over the fleet are Skyraiders, even IMDB doesn’t have to tell me that.

COGEA Spitfire and SEA FuRY target tugs

Here is a link to a site with pics and accounts of a family who had several members flying in WW2 and post War Germany . Good pics and info.
http://www.thomasgenth.de/SeafuryD/indexeng.html