FIRST LOOK

F4F Wildcat DVD from Aircraft Films

By Martin Quinn

The F4F Wildcat was the mainline fighter of the US Navy and Marine Corp during the first year and a half of the Pacific War.  Grumman's stubby little fighter would go on to wrack up a 7-1 kill ratio, but is never considered one of the "great" fighters of World War II.    Nevertheless, the rugged plane gave better than it got, and brought many of pilot home when a vaunted Zero would have have gone down in flames.

Aircraft films has released a new 2 disc DVD on the Grumman F4F series.  I ordered mine on line on a Wednesday, and Friday afternoon it showed up at my door.  I popped the disc in and all I can say is WOW!

Disc one contains a 43 minute documentary on the Wildcat.  The documentary is broken into chapters that covers the evolution of carrier fighter plane and the F4F,  and then the major battles the Wildcat fought in: Pearl Harbor, Wake Island, Coral Sea, Midway, Guadalcanal and the Carrier battles.  There is also a Chapter on the Wildcat in British service and late war FM2 Wildcats.   There is also a slideshow with over 180 photos.

Disc two contains archival footage of F4Fs and FM2s in both color and black and white.   Some of the film includes:

F4F-3s on the Enterprise in 1942.
F4F-4s at Kaneohe Naval Air Station under the leadership of Jimmy Thatch
Publicity footage of Thatch and "Butch" O'Hare in April 1942
Color footage of F2A-3s landing on the USS Lexington off California in late 1941.
John Ford's color film of the Battle of Midway
Computer generated visual of how the "Thatch Weave" worked

Aircraft films mixes still photos with film - ala Ken Burns - to create a nice feature on the Wildcat's development and use during the war.  Most of the footage is stuff I've never seen before and is - to say the least - jaw dropping.   Color film of Wildcats launching from Hornet...a color still of Lexington and a pair of cruisers in what appear to be a fresh coat of Ms11, Sea Blue.   More color film of Wildcats launching from the Big E during the Doolittle Raid.  Black and white film of Betty's attacking the Lady Lex in February, 1942.  The list goes on and on.

If you are a fan of the US Navy in World War Two, this disc is a must have.  I highly recommend it.   To order, contact Aircraft Films.