ON THE COVER:
The 1942 film Air Force came along just when America needed something positive about the war. The film is the fictionalized story nof a Flying Fortress crew fighting during the early months of the war in the Pacific —
right from a group of Forts departing Hamilton Field and flying into the Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor. It is considerably better than most war films of the time and has some really outstanding footage. Around ten “shark fin” B-17B, B-17C, and B-17D variants were used in filming, which took place at Drew AAF near Tampa but the star of the movie was the “B-17D 40-5564” named Mary Ann. The plane was actually B-17B 38-584 that was credited, for unknown reasons, as a B-17D throughout the film. After the movie was completed, the rare B-17B was utilized for War Bond tours. (USAAF)

FEATURES:

THE YONTAN SUICIDE RAID
Okinawa proved to be the proving ground for a variety of Japanese suicide tactics. However, one of the strangest was an airborne commando assault on an important airfield with the goal of destroying as many aircraft and
killing the most Americans possible / by Blake Carlton

PIAGGIO’S FORGOTTEN FIGHTER
Before and during the Second World War, Italy produced a variety of bombers and fighters. Some made it into production and some did not. One of the strangest was the heavily-armed mid-engine Piaggio P.119 / by Howard Carter

COST OF WAR
Continuing our series on damaged and destroyed aircraft of the Second World War with rare color and black and white images pulled from the files of Challenge Publications / by Michael O’Leary

THE LONG SKYROAD WEST
The saga of a Bucker Jungmann and its constant moves west, finally arriving in California / by Ben Presten

THE WAY IT WAS
If you were a youngster in love with aviation during the 1950s, then what could be better than growing up at an airport packed with rare and unusual aircraft? / by Rick Turner

DEPARTMENTS:

MESSAGE FROM PUBLISHER

WARBIRD & CLASSIC REPORT
From around the world, we gather news and updates
on vintage and veteran aircraft / by Doug Fisher

LOG ENTRIES
Today, few people have heard of Lawrence Burst “Gyro”
Sperry, but in the early days of aviation his name was
famous to all that flew / by Mark Bingham

FRIDAY NIGHT OLDIES
A wide variety of surplus ex-military aircraft well before the days of multi-million-dollar restorations / by Doug Fisher

DOWN MEMORY’S RUNWAY
Selection of strange and wonderful flying machines from aviation’s glorious past / by Norm Taylor

AIRLINES
News and views from the readers of Air Classics