NOTE: I'm getting some unexpected comments about me being amused at points of this video, and how disrespectful it is of the military. I want to clarify that I did find aspects of the production amusing, and maybe some of the antics of the soldiers, but I would never laugh at the military in a disrespectful way. I grew up in a very patriotic culture, have family who served in the Navy and Air Force, have friends who serve, and know people personally who've died in combat. I've always held the military in the highest regard, so please don't take any laughter as a sign of disrespect. You'll find that I'm quite respectful and solemn in many moments in this video as well. Just want to clear the air, because it bothers me that people think I would treat the military lightly. If you've seen any of my other videos, you'll know how much I love military stuff, and grew up loving it. --------------- Good to be back! 👍🏻 Thanks for watching! Like and subscribe if you enjoyed this video! ❤ Patreon Club ($3/month): www.patreon.com/sogal_yt 🐕 Social links: linktr.ee/sogal.yt 🖖 My Star Trek podcast: tribblespodcast.com

@fogfullofsilhouettes5842

2 ай бұрын

Thank god your back Sarah. Missed you so much.

@dave_h_8742

2 ай бұрын

Welcome back. There was a plane that finnished their tour before this one but for reasons 🤷‍♂️ Memphis belle is cited as the first American bomber to finnish.

@eamonnclabby7067

2 ай бұрын

​@@fogfullofsilhouettes5842...hear,hear...nose ,nose..foot ,foot...😅😅😅

@keelbyman

2 ай бұрын

Welcome back Sarah! You've been missed!

@markhollywood7135

2 ай бұрын

I know your heart is in the right place and that you didn't mean to be dis respectful. I am sorry for your personnel loss of friends and family. Your video service is of the highest order and very much enjoyed one genuine mistake should be overlooked. My regards and respect to you and what you do. Mark.

hey welcome back , missed your vids

@johnbath616

2 ай бұрын

and roger

It’s nice to see you again. Remember that you’re in demand here, and it shows by everyone greeting you like they haven’t seen you for like forever. 😊

They made a movie called Memphis Belle. This was made at the old RAF Base in Binbrook Lincolnshire where i live and they used a lot of us locals in the making of the movie. The movie was fictional but very loosely based on real events. The Memphis Belle actually flew out of RAF Bassingbourn in Camebridgeshire. When asked if the movie was accurate, one of the real Memphis Belle aircrew said: no, but it did depict events that happened to the squadron at one point or another. Like a lot of Hollywood historic movies, they put out their take on real events, which was usually out of line with the real events. If i were you, i would watch the movie yourself and make your own mind up on the validity of the movie.

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Cool!

@eamonnclabby7067

2 ай бұрын

​@@SoGal_YT...my ol, da was an RAF military policeman...RIP...

@keelbyman

2 ай бұрын

Last base I lived on was Binbrook. Happy times especially when the school bus couldn't make it up the hill in the Winter 😂

The character on the side of that very badly shot up B-17, ‘Old Bill’, is a fictional character created in 1914-15 by cartoonist Bruce Bairnsfather. Old Bill was depicted as an elderly, pipe-smoking British "tommy" with a walrus moustache. The character achieved a great deal of popularity during World War I where it was considered a major morale booster for British troops.

Hi Sarah. I saw that queen back in 1965, when she visited our town. She was the mother of QE II, and also called Elizabeth. The king was George 6. Flak. Airburst shells have a time fuse on the nose so that they detonate so many seconds after its been fired. The Radar has given the gunners the altitude, so they know how long to set. Escort fighter's had quite a limited range, so anything beyond northern France and the low countries - the bombers would be on their own. Later in the war long range escorts were developed - the P38 Lightning, and the Mustang. They made a huge difference and prevented the Germans from mounting an effective defence. Memphis Belle was the first to complete a tour of 25 missions, and then successfully fly back to America to raise funds and morale. An earlier plane had crashed in Iceland on the way back, it lost out on the glory, and most of its crew unfortunately. Once a US crew had completed it's 25, it was sent home with a medal. RAF crews had to do 30. They were then given some leave, but expected to turn up for more work. Some did a second tour of missions, or even started a third, others took up training or desk posts. Nice to see you back on mainstream YT btw.

GREAT to see you back and a great video.... You have been missed and always in our thoughts

Its great to see you back Sarah. To answer your question, to reach that height the projectiles would be 88mm or 125mm. If you know exactly the altitude of the bombers its possible to fire shells with time fuses, otherwise they would be proximity fuses, which detonate when the shell is near an object. Sending you best wishes from Wales.

Lovely to see you back on YT. I have seen a B-17 flying in the UK and they look very graceful in flight for a warplane.

I'm just so happy to see a new video after all this time.

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Thanks, Waldorf!

The Memphis belle was based at RAF Bassingbourn in near Cambridge which is north east from where IWM Duxford is. Duxford was American Air Force Base which had P47 and P51. and RAF Bassingbourn is where they filmed full metal jacket

Fighters did not have the range to escort all the way to Germany. Basically it was up to the gunners on board to defend against those deadly tiny specks.

The Queen's name was Elizabeth, mother of Queen Elizabeth II.

Hey Sarah! 🤗 Nice surprise seeing this pop up in the feed. I'm pleased to see you looking so well, happy and above all, settled with your lot in life. I and I'm certain everyone else looks forward to seeing what you present next (hopefully very soon).

The bombers are beyond the range of spitfire fighters when they drop their bombs. There are very few fighters that can fly that far. I believe that flak has proximity fuses. Flak explodes when it can detect an aircraft within say 100 feet of the flak. Flak contains lots of little fragments to shred aircraft.

nice to see you back on KZread So Gal hope your doing well👍 best wishes from Australia

Don’t worry, I knew you weren’t being disrespectful when you were smiling. Basically the Memphis Belle became famous because of this film. It was one of the first crews to complete a tour of 25 missions. Such were the casualty rates that the odds weren’t in favour of a crew making it to even half that number before they were shot down. So it was a big deal at the time for any plane and crew to complete a tour. Most planes were named by the crew and had ‘nose art’ to match. Basically the pilot of this plane named it in honour of his girlfriend (from Memphis). The flak were artillery shells that would exploded at the height of the bomber streams. It was rare to get a direct hit, but they were deigned to explode like a grenade and shower everything within it’s vicinity with red hot shrapnel - that could easily pierce through an aircraft, either badly damaging and disabling it, or easily killing and maiming crew members. Thanks again for the video.

She's back about time you've been missed x

Memphis Belle, a Boeing-built B-17F-10-BO, manufacturer's serial number 3170 USAAC Serial No. 41-24485 added to the USAAF inventory on 15 July 1942 last wartime mission 19 May 1943 flown back to US to raise money for war bonds Five B-17s were used as Memphis Belle in the movie Currently owned by National Museum of the Air Force but in Palm Springs FL for extensive maintenance

Welcome back to KZread, Sarah! I had a great time being part of this Patreon livestream all those months ago. By the way, don't take those comments calling you out for looking amused too seriously. As a Patron of yours and someone who joins most of your streams, I know you're not the disrespectful type of person Anyway, great video as always 👏🏻👌🏻

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Thanks, Oliver!

@oliversherman2414

2 ай бұрын

@@SoGal_YT you're welcome 😁

Definitely the bad direction for those fingers, but very intentional! My dad's cousin flew in the RCAF as an air gunner. He flew in Halifax bombers out of Elvington in Yorkshire. Their plane was in a collision with an enemy night fighter over Berlin and the entire crew were lost in Jan '44.

Glad to get back into history here with you.. and this time we got Memphis 😃 Thanks! 🐶

welcome back! I don't normally comment on youTube but was happy to see another video from you today, I've missed them!

So glad to see you back!

Hi sarah great to see you back you have been missed

Good to see you back Sarah! Hope you & Scarlett are doing well & sending best wishes from England.

Glad you are back. Missed your vids.

In the film made about the Memphis Belle the plane was portrayed by a B-17G that is British based and still flying from Duxford in Cambridgeshire, which is her base. Known as the 'Sally B' she still carries the Memphis Belle logo on the starboard side of the nose. Sally B is a popular regular sight on the UK air show circuit. Nice to see you back Sarah 😀

The crew of Memphis Belle went into a sound studio to do audio for the intercom section. It was only then when I saw the B-17 going down that they stopped as the PTSD kicked in. HBO have done a remake in 4K it’s called the cold blue

Try not to let the negative comments get you down, you will always get those no matter what you do. Anyone who regularly watches your videos knows you are not being disrespectful. Good to see you post a new video on here. 🙂

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Thank you, Scott!

Good to see you and Charlotte back. The crew if they get through 25 missions go home to train more crews

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Scarlett :) And thanks!

@EricIrl

2 ай бұрын

@@SoGal_YT USAAF bomber crews were expected to complete one "tour" which consisted of 25 missions. Cancelled or recalled missions did not count - and neither did training missions. RAF bomber crews wwre expected to carry out 30 missions to complete a tour. Many volunteered to do two or even three tours. The chances of surviving a single tour were slim.

Nice to see you back on KZread Sarah. That was a great livestream.

Welcome back I've missed you hope all is well

Great to see you back. Missed you. Great reaction.

Great to see you again, been missing You on here 🥳

Awesome to see you back :D

RAF Bomber Command: "It's safer to conduct bombing missions at night" US Air Force: "Hold my beer" 😉 Hi Sarah, nice to see you back on KZread! Glad you enjoyed this insight of a day in the life of a bomber crew in WW2!

The Memphis Belle film was filmed at The Former RAF Binbrook here in Lincolnshire known as Bomber County during The Second World War due the number of bomber bases one of those is now the largest antique centre in Britain Johnny Depp visited the other year.

Great video Sarah.

so happy to see u back

Having only heard of the Memphis Belle via the movie, I am fascinated to discover the real story through you, SoGal!

Hi Sarah so glad to see you back 👍🙂. Hope you are doing well. What a nice surprise to see your video.

Great to see you back Sarah, where have you been? Do tell! The sheer size of these raids was phenomenal and there came a point when P-51 Mustangs equipped with lightweight disposable fuel tanks could escort bombers practically anywhere they went over occupied Europe. The B-17s flew at 25,000-35,000ft, dependent on bomb load, the German flak 88 guns and the Messerschmitt 109 were both effective up to about 33,000ft, so you can see that the B-17s spent a lot of time in the threat zone which resulted in their high casualty rate.

Hey! Great to see you back!

Hello SoGal, Roger and Scarlett. I hope you are well. Nice to see you on KZread. It is late here in UK, so watched on x2, which was more like the speed of a modern documentary. The Germans used anti aircraft guns against tanks in North Africa, but here they would be firing shrapnel designed to tear up the aircraft. It explained they were radar guided. Imagine USS Enterprise maneuvering to avoid Romulan sensors. The later war years saw the long range Mustang fighters with added fuel tanks reaching to Berlin, but early on the fighters had relatively short range, so the German fighters waited until the escort left, then it was up to the bomber formation to defend itself. The British flew bombers at night to gain extra defensive cover. The queen was, like her eldest daughter, called Elizabeth. Note that her father was not expecting to be king, until American Wallis Simpson married her uncle, who was the king. Some juicy royal intrigue for future videos? I commented before that I visited what was then called the Confederate Air Force at Midland in Texas in the 1990s and saw and got to get into planes like those in the film.

Fantastic footage from the war department archive.

Excuse me ma’am! Where tf have you been?! Excited for this vid! Love from Swansea, Wales!

@462Designs

2 ай бұрын

Ask the patrons.

@didnaeknowyehaditinye2813

2 ай бұрын

@@462Designs don’t know any.

the plane memphis Belle is on display at Patterson airbase, near Dayton Ohio, the movie is pretty good

GROUND LAUNCHED ANTI-AIRCRAFT MUNITIONS: Low altitude 7mm and 13mm machine gums solid shot Medium altitude 20 mm, 40 mm, 50 mm armor piercing incendiary explosive shell High altitude 88 mm and 128 mm timed explosive shells Fighter aircraft launching high explosive rocket, dropping aerial mines (time explosion Late war Me-262 jet interceptors, Me-163B rocket powered interceptors, radio guided surface to air missiles

So good to see you back. You always ask excellent questions. While not perfect I highly recommend the new Apple TV+ series Masters of the Air. By the folks that brought us Band of Brothers and The Pacific. It's a very good depiction of the Air War in Europe. Would love to see you react to it. This theatre of conflict was one of the most brutal in all the war. The MotA series does have to rely on CGI for a lot of the depiction but it's mostly passable. It does cover actual veterans...but was made long after the men had passed...so no direct veteran interviews. Take care. Looking forward to your next.

Welcome back ;-) There are only a few WWII bombers left. A B-17 was destroyed in flight in a collision in 2022. Clark Gable flew in a B-17 (KZread) as a promo. Even over enemy territory. Hitler had a high price on his head. 77,000 8th USAAF men lost in WWII. There is a movie about the Memphis Belle too.

The major German flak gun was an 88 because it fired a shell of 8.8cm diameter ( just under 3inches ) and most bombers couldn’t fly high enough to be above the flak.

The Memphis Belle flew out of Bassingbourn, my secondary school was in Bassingbourn, and my under 16 football team trained in one of the hangers on the airfield.

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Nice!

That's not a peace sign, its a victory sign, and its in the right direction.

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Thought one way meant the middle finger.

@paulmaxey6377

2 ай бұрын

There is two ways of doing the 'V' sign in the UK. Fingers forward is the peace/victory sign some people do do the 'V' for peace as well although it was done for victory in WW2, the plane had fingers facing backwards which is the 'up yours' to put it politely. It dates back to when England was fighting the French at Agincourt and the English longbow users who were captured had their first two fingers cut off so they couldn't pull back on the string to fire the longbow. So the English started to do the 'V' sign to show the French that they still had their fingers. Churchill would do it both ways, thought to be sometimes on purpose the wrong way round.

@Rocket1377

2 ай бұрын

​@SoGal_YT We have the middle finger gesture in the UK, too. Two fingers is more common.

@eamonnclabby7067

2 ай бұрын

​@@SoGal_YT...more of a Spock nerd here...with a hint of Ringo...living on Merseyside has that effect

Definitely an interestingly different one to see you do a WW2 American video for a change. The History Guy has some good WW2 stories (especially naval ones) from both the US and UK.

B-17s are very slow compared to the Bf-109, Me-110, Ju-88, FW--190 assigned to shoot them down. To avoid turning the intercept into a slaughter, deceptive courses and dispositions were used frequently.

The movie 'Memphis Belle' (1992) is really good.

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Will have to check it out.

@eamonnclabby7067

2 ай бұрын

​@@SoGal_YT...a young Sean Astin...long before LOTR...

Not seen you for ages. Nice to have you back. I built a model of Memphis Belle back in 1980. The real aircraft is on display - in Memphis. Just to add a correction - WAS on display in Memphis for many years but is now at the Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio (and lovingly restored too). Regarding the artwork on the nose of "Memphis Belle", the image is based on a well know publicity photo of the Hollywood star of the day, Betty Grable. She had the most amazing legs which were rumoured to be insured (in 1940) for $1million. If you do a Google search you will find the original picture. You asked about whether the bombing raid were escorted. The answer is "yes" and "no". In the film, the narrator mentions that one of the diversionary raids (using B-26 Marauders) is escorted by RAF Spitfires. This is because it is a relatively short range raid on Northern France, within the range of the escorting Spitfires. However, the raid to Wilhemshaven would have been unescorted there and back because at this stage in the war (1943) the long range P-51 Mustang was not yet available.

The KZread channel 'Military Aviation History' has a number of very well researched videos about the German response to the American daylight raids. Fighter escort for the American bombers only became possible in late 1944/early 1945 with improved versions of the P-47 equipped with drop tanks and the arrival of the Merlin engined P-51 which had the range to escort them deep into Germany. The 88mm (about 3 1/2 inches) flak gun was as big a danger to the bombers as the Luftwaffe fighters.

At the time that the film was made most fighter aircraft did not have the range to escort the bombers all the way to Germany and back. In the commentary they actually say that there will be no fighter cover. That's why the Spitfires were only able to escort the B25s on the shortest route. In 1944 the Americans fitted drop-tanks to their P47 and P51 fighters. They then had enough fuel to go all the way there and back. The Germans had a range of anti aircraft guns from 20mms calibre upwards. The most famous was the 88 which I've heard described as the best gun in the world at the time. It's maximum range was 14660 metres or over 48,000 feet. Far higher than the maximum altitude of a B17.

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Crazy how far tech has come.

@paulthomas-hh2kv

Ай бұрын

Spitfires actually could reach Germany, see Spitfire 944 about American pilot Lt Col Blyth on recon who flew about 50 missions around Germany

@daviddavis7710

Ай бұрын

@@paulthomas-hh2kv Yes but wasn't that a photo reconnaissance Spitfire with no guns and extra fuel tanks in their place?

@daviddavis7710

Ай бұрын

@@paulthomas-hh2kv I believe that his aircraft was a photo-reconnaissance Spitfire without guns and with extra fuel tanks where the magazines were to give the aircraft greater range.

@paulthomas-hh2kv

Ай бұрын

@@daviddavis7710 Yes true, due to Raf doing night bombing, spitfire unsuitable as a night fighter. Though spitfire could be fitted with drop tanks Raf found a better use for them 🍺. Fun fact Spitfires used drop tanks to deliver beer to troops in Normandy 🥳 see Spitfire beer bombs

Damn, the narrator sounds like Lee Marvin.

Where did the plane fly on the way home? It was too far to fly nonstop. My guess: England to Prestwick, Scotland then To Reykjavik Iceland (part Denmark then), southern tip of Greenland, Gander Newfoundland, Goose Bay, Labrador, Bangor Maine .... Memphis?

The building in the background is not a castle. It is a church.

Hello hope you ok lass , at this stage of the war before D Day and Normandy these bombing missions were unescorted due to distances flown it was different later with air bases in France and the long range Mustangs , these were deadly daylight missions and there was a lot of losses and that’s why they made a big deal of any Aircrew who made the full tour , also the flak exploded with a lot of like small shrapnel bits which tore thru the aircraft not harmless at all , you can see during the footage the small shrapnel holes filmed inside the aircraft, they were very brave men .

In 1943-44 the common high altitude AA shell was a timer fused high explosive shell from batteries of 88-mm (3.5 inch) rifled guns, comparable to those used in a Tiger tank or late Panther or a patrol boat or submarine deck gun In action video of Flak 43 88mm kzread.info/dash/bejne/fH2k15ivg7e9orQ.htmlsi=AZVKnvvGMervFGWu Flak gunners at work kzread.info/dash/bejne/dHuK1LmiXcKthaw.htmlsi=gcar2KB_3BYeEjHP

Extra information. A bombing mission could take from five to ten hours (or more) depending on the target. For example, the round trip from Lincolnshire to Berlin and back is around 1100 miles and the Flying Fortress had a cruising speed of around 170mph. Fighter planes did not have the range to escort bombers all the way to the target and back, and they flew at over 300 mph which made co-ordinating an escort difficult. US crews were taken off operations when they completed 25 missions. As a comparison the RAF tour was 30 missions; crews were rested or posted to training units then returned to operational duty. Leonard Cheshire was awarded the Victoria Cross for completing 100 missions. The narration on this video may seem very old-fashioned to modern viewers. That was the way it was done back then. Listen to the Blitz broadcasts by the American reporter Edward R Murrow.

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Thanks for the info! I'm very familiar with this older style, but still find it amusing at times. I'm a big fan of stuff from the black and white era :)

"Flak" or anti-aircraft artillery was predominantly the multipurpose 88mm rapid-fire high muzzle velocity rifled cannon, but larger calibers were also used and at lower levels, an enormous additional range would have reached them, hence the altitude chosen. Higher and they would have needed far more oxygen and things like heated suits (which only arrived later in the war). Lower and more antiaircraft guns could reach them, and the bombs didn't speed up enough for decent penetration. So 25k was typical. When I have made one of my frequent visits to the American Air Museum at RAF Duxford, now a part of the Imperial War Museum, I take my time going up the long, curved entry ramp, which is lined by thick glass panels engraved, in plan form and laid out according to unit, every US aircraft which flew from British soil during WW2 and never came back. I think around half are B-17s. Even after too many visits to count, I can't reach the entrance at the top without tears. Just around Cambridge in the other direction is the American Cemetry, where the crew who made it back, but only because the aircraft carrying their remains did, along with those who succumbed to their injuries after landing. There is another huge wall there, on which is inscribed the names of those who died or are missing in action who did not form part of a crew lost with their entire aircraft, although not all are actually buried there. It includes those lost and not recovered in the Battle of the Atlantic. Some families have repatriated the remains to a local cemetery that they can visit. In terms of the number of burials and MIAs commemorated there, it is the second largest US military cemetery outside the US.

Hi. Good to see you again.

If you want to watch World War II documentary, let me recommend World War II: The last heroes there are six episodes and they talk to the veterans about their experiences starting from D-Day through to the end of the war. They talk to British Canadian and American veterans it’s a must watch.

the queen later to be the queen mother was elizabeth bowes

hi sarah..long time no see.i retired 5 years early.love Glenn

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Hey, Glenn!

Yas in for this

I recommend watching the Memphis Belle movie, great movie

Sorry, sitting on that field is NOT just as bad as flying the mission.

The old documentary seemed so pedestrian and didn't convey much except that the bombers seemed to have free run. I'm guessing this filming occurred much later into the war because they had fighter cover and the Luftwaffe had suffered a huge blow to their numbers. I feel the tv series Masters of the Air portrayed a better picture of what went on back then because in the earlier period of the war, it was brutal for the bomber squads.

@EricIrl

2 ай бұрын

The filming of "The Memphis Belle" was shot on a real raid in May 1943.The director was well known Hollywood director William Wyler - who had directed some major Hollywood movies, such as "Mrs Minerva". The action as depicted is real although the original film shot was silent so the "crew" comments were added in post production. It is looked on as a landmark documentary of its time and is notable by its lack of jingoism. It portrays to a large extent the difficulty of what the bombers faced and the stoicism and dry humour of the crews. The film was shot when long range escorts were not available so the bombers went most of the way to and from the targets relying entirely on their own guns for defence. If the film had been shot later in the war (1944 or 1945) the B-17s would have been "G" models (rather than "F" models) and most likely would have been in natural metal rather than green and grey camouflage.

@OG21020

2 ай бұрын

@@EricIrl Ah, interesting. Thanks for the information.

Okay, the voice-over is overly chummy and dramatic, but the decoy formations are not for show; Bombers had no fighters at all to protect them when far inland in Germany: no P51 Mustangs yet. So as many enemy fighters as possible had to be diverted.

Could you imagine living in London back then?

Show some respect. A lot of young airmen lost their lives. 96,000 just in the US 8th air force alone.

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

I’m never disrespectful of the military. Sorry if you perceived it that way.

@eamonnclabby7067

2 ай бұрын

​@@SoGal_YT....no offence here...carry on and keep laughing in these cruel days...I carry plenty of trauma baggage...so don't worry...😊

None too happy you giggled your way through this. OK I know it was a little cheesy.

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

No disrespect intended.

@AnthonyValentine-vm1yc

2 ай бұрын

@@SoGal_YT I know you from old, and your respect of the military is beyond question. Anyways, so glad your back.

@eamonnclabby7067

2 ай бұрын

​@@SoGal_YT....Mrs C was a Captain in the QARNC in the BAOR, armed with a Sterling sub machine gun and a Browning side arm to protect her patients if the Russians arrived...she always found time for a cuppa and a laugh...

The likelihood of surviving a bombing mission was 50% OK and 44% dead and 6% survivable injuries, or to put it in the light of the number of bombing missions you had to complete before a period of rest, was 30, then every man on those planes was living on borrowed time. A bunch of very brave men.

@phillee2814

2 ай бұрын

25 missions in a tour at that time (it was even mentioned in the film), I think it was extended to 30 when the P51 Mustangs arrived, with the range to escort them both ways, and the survival odds improved quite a lot. Until Memphis Belle completed that flight and earned a trip home, not one of the thousands deployed had managed that feat, which is why it was such a big deal.

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Yeah, it's insane.

Welcome back. Do you have a cold?

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Not anymore :)

🇺🇸👸🏻🇬🇧

The two finger's in that position is not the victory sign. It's british for... UP YOURS. You my know it in the US as the finger.

@Rocket1377

2 ай бұрын

We have the middle finger gesture in the UK too.

@walters720

2 ай бұрын

Only because of American TV shows since the 1960's

Good to see you back. Although King George VI’s wife was generally called the Queen, her correct title was “Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon.” She was born in the year 1900 & passed away in 2002. The Royal Family were an inspiration to the people of the UK during the war..

The B-17 was the US equivalent of the RAF's Avro Lancaster (the Vulcan's Great-grandmother). "Memphis Belle," was the first B-17 to complete a 25 mission tour of duty - her crew, would become instructors. 300 feet/minute for a loaded B-17 is pretty good. These plans look complex, because it was vital to distract as many fighters as possible. While Flak (anti-aircraft fire) was dangerous, fighters were by far the greatest danger to bomber crews. The main anti-aircraft weapon used by the Germans in this role was the 88mm , which weighed close to 20lb and detonated at a preset altitude. This was before the arrival of the P-51 Mustang to Europe - no allied fighter could fly far enough to protect them. Old Bill's gesture is the UK equivalent of The Finger. Queen Elizabeth (later the Queen Mother) her elder daughter was named after her.

@tomhirons7475

2 ай бұрын

no the lancaster could carry double the bomb load.

@andrewcomerford9411

2 ай бұрын

@@tomhirons7475 And more, I was trying to keep it simple.

@tomhirons7475

2 ай бұрын

@@andrewcomerford9411 sorry mate

@andrewcomerford9411

2 ай бұрын

@@tomhirons7475 No problem.

@EricIrl

2 ай бұрын

@@tomhirons7475 But flew lower and wasn't as well defended. Both bombers had their plus and minus points and reflected very different bombing strategies. There were other bombers too - such as the B-24 Liberator (which was superior to the B-17 in many ways) and the British Handley Page Halifax, which, in its later versions, was a very capable bomber and very versatile in other roles.

Compared to the sugarcoated "Belle", American public relations war documentary films became increasing unflinching as the war progressed. "With the Marines on Tarawa" (the first to include graphic scenes of dead American marines, requiring FDR's personal authorization to be shown) and especially John Huston's 1945 "Battle of San Pietro" (considered so graphic it was subjected to extensive edits prior to its release) provide a more nuanced picture of "why we fought".

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

I'd love to go through a bunch of these old films.

The queen during the war was Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, she was nearly 102 when she died (2002)! Fighter planes didn't have the range to escort bombers to Germany. If you were luck you got Mosquitos which some were armed with 4 canon in the nose.

Where have you been baby girl

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

Around.

You need to place your head of some hot water & breathe in the steam. It will help with the acute sinusitis.

Why are you laughing all the time??? These were NO times to laugh about...people were laying down their lives for freedom for others..... Sorry Girl very inappropriate.

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

I was laughing at some of the production choices, not at the military. I’m sorry you perceived it the wrong way.

@corjp

2 ай бұрын

@@SoGal_YT okay, thanks for explaining, i was worried that it all was a funny thing to you. 👍

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

​@@corjp No, I actually love these old war films, and have seen a few of them. They're just a bit cheesy by today's standards, and occasionally I find it funny. But I love it.

@corjp

2 ай бұрын

@@SoGal_YT Okay, you're off my blacklist👍😊. I just was taken aback by your laughters. No hard feelings anymore.

@eamonnclabby7067

2 ай бұрын

​@@SoGal_YT....I had a relative in the London Irish regiment in WW2 in sunny Italee...they brewed cuppa after cuppa in front of the Germans....keep laughing...😅😅😅

Why are you laughing?

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

I hope you saw the note in my pinned comment, but I just found some production aspects amusing. Nothing to do with the military content itself.

Forgive me it is very nice to see your return but laughing and joking during this very serious film of the Memphis Belle is not appropriate. Your country men and mine risked and gave their lives for our freedom to enjoy our lives without tyranny, my father was one of them. I realise you are young and need to learn and therefore leeway has to be given but you need to give serious thought to the sacrifice these men and women gave so that you and I have the freedom to live our lives the way we see fit. Forgive me for being so harsh on someone so young but this is to important to just let go, My regards to you.

@SoGal_YT

2 ай бұрын

I’m very aware - the production choices were what I found amusing. Had nothing to do with the actual military stuff.

@eamonnclabby7067

2 ай бұрын

​@@SoGal_YT.....as ex service personnel ...a long Time ago?.😅😅😅 , keep on keeping on, you are so valued to us here on the Wirral ...

This sounds like a monty Python sketch ❤😂😂

Like the most deadliest Joke ever written ❤

Fighters did not have the range to escort all the way to Germany. Basically it was up to the gunners on board to defend against those deadly tiny specks.