Thunderbolt
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Capt. John Sturges
James Stewart
Lloyd Bridges
Eugene Kern
M/sgt. Lester Koenig
Cpl. Gail Kubik
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
On the liberated island of Corsica, Lt. Gen. Ira C. Eaker, commanding general of the Mediterranean Air Forces, Maj. Gen. John K. Cannon, leader of the Twelfth Air Force, and Brig. Gen. Gordon Seville of the Twelfth Tactical Air Command, plan Operation Strangle. The plan is designed to help the advance of the United States Fifth and British Eighth Armies, which have been stopped at the Gustav Line near Anzio and Cassino for five months. Operation Strangle involves pilots of the Fifty-Seventh Fighter Group bombing behind enemy lines and cutting off the transport of enemy supplies, using the P-47 Thunderbolt, a one-engine, one-man plane. On the day of the attack, the planes, each carrying two 500-pound bombs, one under each wing, take off in pairs and fly in formation behind the squadron leader. Although take-offs in the heavy planes are difficult, some of the pilots, who are all in their early twenties, have flown over 170 missions. Because the P-47 lacks a bombsight, it is not accurate, and many of the bombs miss their designated target, a narrow bridge. After their bombs are dropped, and the bridge is destroyed, the pilots search for other possible targets. Spotting a train, they open fire with machine guns and strafe it, until the fuel it is carrying explodes. They then destroy a lighthouse and a radio station. German vehicles near a farmhouse indicate a possible command post, and it, too, is strafed. An unidentified figure crossing a field is shot from the air. Meanwhile, at the airfield, another squadron, one of nine scheduled for that day, takes off. Soon after, a squadron returns from its mission, minus one of its planes. One plane crashes on landing, and as is always the case, the men can only watch while it burns. After the mission, the men take care of their basic necessities, or relax with the others. By mid-April, every rail line in Italy is blocked. The Germans then start transporting supplies by truck and boat. In response, the air forces bomb the roads and waterways. Finally, the ground forces attack the weakened enemy and, three weeks later, arrive in Rome. With Rome secured, the infantry pushes north.
Crew
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
A spoken foreword notes that this picture was photographed in combat zones by cameramen of the Mediterranean Allied Air Forces and by pilots of the 12th Air Force, who operated automatic cameras in the plane during combat missions. Footage was shot on 16mm film and transferred to 35mm for the film's release. Actor James Stewart then reads a letter from General Carl Spaatz, Commander General of the U.S. Army Air Forces, which states that the film, made in 1944, is about one American fighter bomber group in the Italian campaign, but could be told about all the men of the Allied forces who fought for freedom. According to a Hollywood Reporter news item, Stewart's introduction was filmed in late January 1947. During the war, Stewart, an Air Force Colonel, commanded a bomber wing and was an instructor of Flying Fortress pilots. He won the Distinguished Flying Cross for his service. By the time of the film's 1945 press screening director William Wyler had returned to civilian life. Although the film was screened for the press at the end of 1945, it was not released to the general public until 1947, around the time of the anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Army Air Force. At that time, 50 percent of the film's gross revenue was donated to the U.S. Treasury and the Army Air Force Relief Fund, according to a June 17, 1947 Hollywood Reporter news item. Thunderbolt was re-released by Monogram in 1950 when the U.S. became involved in the Korean war.
