Behind the Scenes in World War 2 - Volume 8

Army Air Force Combat Camera Unit Film Reports 1943-45 (60 Minutes)
*Bombing White Cloud Airdrome, Canton China * First American Bomber Raids on Berlin March 5-8 1944 *Dive Bomber Attacks at Monte Casino *Massive paratroop maneuvers in England before D-Day *Airborne troop landings & attack aircraft support the capture of Mytkyina Airfield, Burma *B-29 Raids on Rangoon & Kuala Lumpur *B-24s based at Morotai attack Mindinao, Zamboanga and Balibpapan, Borneo *Saipan based B-29 night attacks against Kobe & Nagoya, Japan *B-24s and low level B-25s support the invasion of Borneo at various landing beeches *Bomb Damage in Berlin shortly after surrender *Communications wire laying from flying aircraft over remote locations *Flying Tigers play baseball in Kunming, China *Message pickup by a light plane without landing in Burma *Front Line Hospital work in the jungle, Yupbang, Burma.

Self Propelled Anti Aircraft Weapons 1943 (10 Minutes) An overview of U.S. Army half-track turret mounted mobile anti aircraft guns, including the M-13 (two .50 caliber machine guns), the M-15 (two .50 calibers & one M1 37mm auto canon) and the M-16 (four .50 calibers). Shows them on maneuvers and in a memorable direct fire demonstration against ground targets. Basic operations by turrets operator/gunners too.

461st AAA Battalion Direct Fire Support for 28 Inf. Div, Hürtgen Forest 11/4/1944
(7 Minutes) I created this mini documentary from recently discovered silent, unedited footage from the National Archives. I edited & assembled the shots into what I believe reflects the story telling intent of the combat cameramen who filmed it in1944. I added live sound effects sampled from real M60 Half-Tracks, GMC CCKW 353 2½-ton 6×6 trucks and live firings of Bofors 40mm Antiaircraft guns & Quad .5o calibers. The film shows elements of the 461st AAA BAT, including M-60 Half-track M16s with quad .50 cals and GMC trucks towing 40mm Bofors M1 Anti Aircaft Guns, arriving at two locations in the Hürtgen forest. They set up positions and aim direct fire at distant Wehrmacht units in the forest. This is unusually high quality footage showing men and equipment up close. Live firing scenes are awesome!

Four Films Featuring Tanks (18:00)
*The Sherman DD “Flotation Screens” for amphibious tanks were first developed by the British in 1941 and soon adapted for Valentines. This film shows a U.S. A4 Sherman version as it was deployed on D-Day, June 6th 1944. “DD’ stands for ”Duplex Drive” meaning both propeller and track drive capable. DD Tanks could swim at up to 4 knots. This fascinating "Top Secret" report shows in detail how the flotation screens and twin propellers were deployed and how the tank operated in water. Very detailed.
*Armored Battle Sleds This one has to be seen to be believed! 3rd Infantry CO BG John O'Daniel demonstrates his “Battle Sled” prototype in the field to VI Corps CO MG Lucian Truscott & 5th Army CO LTG Mark Clark near Anzio, Italy, 4/6/1944. Chains of semi-circular armored tubes with Infantrymen lying flat inside are towed behind Sherman tanks into battle, avoiding enemy fire until they reach their destination. Then the troopers jump out and charge!
*Captured German “Goliath” Remote Controlled Tracked Mines Goliath tracked mines were wire remote controlled mini-tanks used by the German Army as explosive filled demolition vehicles during World War II. 7,564 were produced & used primarily by specialized Panzer and combat engineer units. They first appeared in 1942 and were deployed on all fronts through 1945, including on D-Day 1944. Here U.S. Army engineers use captured ones to show how they worked and give a quick drive around demonstration.
*Snow Suits for Tanks Company D, 353rd Tank Battalion (attached to 36th Inf. Division) paint their tanks winter white plus “driving practice for new men,” near Mackwiller, Bas Rin, France January 10th, 1945. This is another collection of silent raw archival footage that I edited together & added sound effects. I was able to identify the exact date & unit shown through careful research of divisional records and clues in the footage. This "behind the scenes" film has the quality of a home movie showing tankers going about their daily business while held in reserve, having a brief respite from combat. Features M5 Stuart Light Tanks & M-4 Shermans and their crews.

Japanese Long Distance Paper Balloon Incendiary Bombs (10 minutes)
This is an ingenious invention I had read about, but never expected to see - until I discovered this U.S. Navy training film. During World War 2 Japan developed large hydrogen filled paper balloons that carried incendiary bombs all the way from Japan to the the West Coast of North America - from Mexico to Canada. Released near Nagoya at specific times of the year, they ascended to about 30,000' and road prevailing winds, traveling at about 100mph, taking about four days to reach the West Coast. A set of relatively simple instruments controlled altitude and release of small incendiary bombs designed to set fire to forests, crops and flammable structures. Some of them made it all the way, but without causing significant damage. The U.S. Navy recovered a few that crashed & failed to explode to study them and to recreate the replicas shown & explained in this fascinating film.

Seabees in Normandy – the Creation of Artificial Harbors (20:00 minutes)
After the D-Day landings on June 6^th, until seaports like Cherbourg could be captured and put in service, artificial harbors had to be created off shore so essential men, equipment and supplies could be offloaded from transports and ferried or driven over piers to the beaches. Giant “Phoenix” concrete caissons were towed and sunk as the first step in creating large artificial “Mulberry”harbors. A lot more construction followed to complete the harbor with all its facilities, as shown in this very detailed film. And they served many more functions like repair shops, medical aid stations and AAA installations. “Behind the Scenes” info you won't see anywhere else.

Japanese Americans Fighting for Their Country in Italy 1944 (8 minutes)
This issue of the “Army Navy Screen Magazine” film series was created to show men & women in U.S. Forces world wide the courageous and productive service of Japanese American Units in the Italian Campaign in World War 2. Soldiers of the 442nd Infantry Regiment talk about their service, the unit is shown in action and there's a tribute by 5th Army CO LTG Mark Clark. Members of their families living in Hawaii receive posthumous decorations for sons who died in combat. Although mention is made that Japanese Americans should be treated no differently than German or Italian Americans, unfortunately, no mention is made that thousands of Japanese American families were unjustly interned in camps during the War, making the sacrifice their sons made even more remarkable.