SONS OF THE AIR [Main Title]

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  • Title: SONS OF THE AIR [Main Title]
  • Film Number: RMY 108
  • Other titles:
  • Summary: Survey of life in the Air Training Corps which covers the period from when the Cadets enrol, promising loyalty to King, Country and Flag, to the time when they are ready to take the controls of a trainer.
  • Description: (Reel 1) Commentary over opening parade: "They look so good, so fit and so alert. No wonder the best type of boy can hardly wait until he is old enough to join". Enrolment and oath - promising loyalty to king, country and flag. After receiving their new uniforms, they do parade ground drill and then practise PT (1582 Squadron jumping the horse, sprinting and hurdling). "Fitness, intelligence and keenness" are the qualities needed in the RAF, and these qualities are developed in boys of all walks of life as cadets in the ATC. Athletics competition - Air Chief Marshal Sir William Mitchell, Commandant for London Command, awards prizes to winning athletes. The cadets' training includes classroom instruction in maths, engineering, plane identification using models as teaching aids, signalling (Morse and Aldis lamp). (Reel 2) Canteen and good comradeship - piano playing. Final drill - parade ground. Meetings with real pilots, practise in trainer, in other planes in the air. Flying log signed. Loading ammo. Bombing up. (Reel 3) Going up in Mitchell. Seamanship (necessary for ASR), gliding and finally actually flying in a Tiger Moth. The instructors talk while the cadets look studious and listen. The film ends with a special parade in London in memory of Flight Sergeant Aaron, the first ex-ATC cadet to win the VC. Two famous VCs, Squadron Leaders Bennett and Leroy, and Aarons father are present, as well as Air Marshal Sir Leslie Gossage, Chief Commandant of the ATC. (Reel 4) The Air Marshal reads the VC citation. Montage of planes, ATC flag. Marchpast to RAF tune - Gossage and father take salute. Abrupt end.
  • Alternative Title:
  • Colour: B&W
  • Digitised:
  • Object_Number: RMY 108
  • Sound: Sound
  • Access Conditions: IWM Attribution: © IWM (RMY 108)
  • Featured Period: 1939-1945
  • Production Date: 1943
  • Production Country: GB
  • Production Details: The Rank Organisation (Production sponsor) General Film Distributors, London (Production company) Knight, Castleton (Production individual) Bromige, H T (Production individual) Candy, Edward A1920-01-022007 (Production individual) Cannon, P (Production individual) Edmonds, A (Production individual) Prentice, A S (Production individual) Turner, P J (Production individual) Rowe, W T (Production individual) O'Donnell, R P (Wing Commander) (Production individual) RAF Central Band (Production individual) Abbott, H A (Production individual) Bushnell, A C (Production individual) Hooker, W H (Production individual) Jarratt, Edward (Production individual) Emmett, E V H (Production cast)
  • Personalities, Units and Organisations: Aaron, Arthur Louis (person) Bennett, Eugene Paul (person) Gossage, Ernest Leslie (person) Leroy (Squadron Leader) (person) Mitchell, William Gore Sutherland (person) Royal Air Force, Air Training Corps (regiment/service)
  • Keywords: aircraft, British - light military: De Havilland Tiger Moth (object name) aircraft, United States - combat: North American B-25 Mitchell & [allied] (object name) ceremonies, British - event-related: memorial parade for Flight Sergeant Aaron (object name) operations, British air - routine (object name) recreation, British air - casual: piano playing (object name) training, British air: Air Training Corps (object name) London, England, UK (geography)
  • Physical Characteristics: Colour format: B&W Sound format: Sound Soundtrack language: English Title language: English Subtitle language: None
  • Technical Details: Format: 35mm Number of items/reels/tapes: 4 Footage: 3535 ft; Running time: 39 mins
  • HD Media:
  • Link to IWM Collections page:

    RMY 108

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