Their names maybe lost to history and we may never known where they came from, where they fought and where they died. But to us they will always be the greatest generation.
@DannyBoy777777
7 ай бұрын
@FreeWorldAllDay 80 percent of all German and German-allied casualties were sustained in combat against the Soviet Union. I assume you mean we owe the Soviets who did most of the dieing.
@Captainkebbles1392
5 ай бұрын
@@DannyBoy777777 I think you need to touch some grass dude
@JonWilde2105
5 ай бұрын
Go visit London or Paris - or indeed Berlin - in 2024. Owe them for what?
@WeaponizedAutism343
2 жыл бұрын
Man, this scene gets me every time I watch it
@zacharyzier314
2 жыл бұрын
It's humbling to know just how many of those letters were written, and it's even sadder to know that there were probably quite a few servicemen who had no one back home to send such a letter to, no one to remember them.
@asianbandit4054
2 жыл бұрын
Their names maybe lost to history and we may never known where they came from, where they fought and where they died. But to us they will always be the greatest generation.
@IAmJaguarPaw.ThisIsMyForest.
Жыл бұрын
Excellent point.
@Sigma0283
Жыл бұрын
And another sad fact is while the age range varied, many of those who lost their lives in WWII were as young as sixteen.
@JonWilde2105
5 ай бұрын
@@Sigma0283 Even younger in WW1. Boys as young as 13 served in the British Army at the Battle of the Somme, such was the jingoism. That boy (Lewis) survived (probably his fellow soldiers were smarter than recruiters), and someone informed his mother who demanded the British Army release her child, which they did after the battle. He re-enlisted in 1918 and survived to be a cop, do bomb disposal in WW2 and run a pub - so I guess he was always going to be trouble. That said I think Vietnam was notably different to WW2 for the US in that the average age of the US combatant was almost a decade lower than it was in WW2.
@turczech
2 жыл бұрын
I've watched this movie countless of times but only the last time I watched it very recently I broke into tears during this scene.
@L2024k
5 ай бұрын
全くの同感です!このシーンを見て、重く言葉が突き刺さるのです。とても悲しい・・・。
@ericscottstevens
2 жыл бұрын
Exceptional acting by David Strathairn, you know if the departed USAAF crews had a collective voice in 1990, they would have approved of his casting and this scene. Really moving aspect of motion picture history. Just exceptional.
@Sigma0283
Жыл бұрын
I really appreciate this scene as it shows that Col. Harriman genuinely does care about the men he sends up into the air and how much it affects him when a plane is lost as he's the one who has to give the news to the families and why he doesn't want to celebrate prematurely. He was also right to call out Lt. Col. Derringer and have him read some of the letters. The part where Derringer looks up from the letter, I can imagine Harriman pointing at the letter with a cold look on his face that would have said "Keep reading". The footage from actual combat missions of the bombers being shot down is heartbreaking to watch as the reality of so many lives lost in the sky sinks in. The average life expectancy of an Eighth Air Force B-17 in 1943 before being shot down was around 11 missions. A B-17 flying and completing 25 missions with an intact crew was a literal miracle.
@manhunter433
9 ай бұрын
The Colonel was able to tell in detail who it was and what happened to them after a brief reading of each letter. A commander that felt the weight of his command and the burden he must bear.
@msb3235
Жыл бұрын
Although fictional, the initial letter highlights the father's admiration for the Colonel's ability to provide a detailed description of his son, down to his boots, signifies the Colonel's serious commitment to understanding each and every young man he sends into battle, fully aware that some may not return alive.
@Tank50us
8 ай бұрын
Actually... all of the letters were real. However, the USAAC didn't keep copies of the letters, so most were destroyed or lost to time. The RAF however _did_ keep copies, and the film crew was able to get reprints made for this scene. Obviously some were edited to be more 'American', but these letters were real. And I get the feeling the actor forced to read them wasn't prepared for what he was about to read... thus his facial expression of a gut punch.
@justagirlwhoisangy5393
2 ай бұрын
"I have 24 crews up there, they are all special to me." Love that guy
@thunderbolt4494
2 жыл бұрын
Not so fun fact: some of the gun camera footage is taken from the Bf-109's 30mm cannon, which the Luftwaffe used the most on the heavily armored bombers. That is why so many pieces and chunks were taken out from the B-17.
@sharonrosenbauer2146
Жыл бұрын
Yes In some 109s.. others more commonly used 2 standard MG's thru the prop as always, but had (not all the time, as they affected 109 flight performance, bf-109s where G series at this point, over powered, hard to control, older F models were the best) used 2 20mm pod cannons and 20mm thru prop.. it's true the 109s had allot of firepower.. u didn't see fw-190s as much as their engines inferior it high altitudes..I think I'm roughly correct?! 👍
@Spacegoat92
Жыл бұрын
@@sharonrosenbauer2146 Early FW 190's struggled at higher altitudes, but that was remedied in later variants, and they became a very deadly bomber hunter.
@sci-fifuture465
2 жыл бұрын
I watched the following documentary recently "The Second Schweinfurt Raid - The USAAF's Black Thursday, October 1943 - Animated" there is a bit when a B-17 co piolet waves at another member of a B-17 crew while hid crew bails out, his plane then blows up. Insane courage!
@kokoeteantigha389
Жыл бұрын
Those gun camera shots were absolutely chilling. I practically followed the pattern of the hits including even the ones that missed, and could imagine how many of them either meant the airmen in those allied aircraft would not make it home or that someone in there would lose a body part or even die. Mein Gott, war is plain evil.
@Sigma0283
Жыл бұрын
And in those patterns where you see the tracer (The glowing bullet), there were four more bullets in front and in back before you see the next tracer.
@veteran20002001
3 ай бұрын
And dodging bomber parts!
@alansbinnie1446
3 жыл бұрын
Very, very moving scene.
@Bobbymaccys
7 ай бұрын
1:53 that look John Lithgow gives, never ceases to give me a knot in my throat
@manhunter433
2 жыл бұрын
The Commanders who care for those under their command. They feel the weight of responsibility, and that while they acknowledge the best ones, they equally respect and honor the rest who put their lives on the line
@Captainkebbles1392
2 жыл бұрын
*more Americans airmen died in the skies of Europe than Marines in the Pacific, this is not an insult to the Marines, but a heart breaking thank you to the men who ascended to the heavens, and never came back down with the rest of us" The letters are real I believe as is the footage, only the opening part of the first isn't real, using the fake character's name.
@ericscottstevens
2 жыл бұрын
The 100th BG (Bloody Hundredth) by the summer of 1943 were at the point they had lost 27 crews from their original 35. They still participated in the Second Schweinfurt mission with only 8 aircraft. Most would have been withdrawn to refit and retrain. The Hundredth decided it was their chance to stay in the action and make a difference. All 8 of their aircraft survived the Second Schweinfurt mission.
@mightymac63
11 ай бұрын
@@ericscottstevens And on one of the first large strikes to Berlin in March 1944-the 100th lost 15 planes
@rj-yy2gm
Жыл бұрын
"I hope when this is all over that the world will have learned there is a better way to solve to solve it's problems" I can't help but imagine this woman's voice-over with the World Trade Center collapse happening and the troops of today preparing for the invasion of Afghanistan. Unfortunately, the world hasn't learned anything yet.
@nifleiim6078
Ай бұрын
As long as we had men,the dismal circle keep going.
@kinglego5600
20 күн бұрын
Unfortunately, that’s the nature of conflict. Just when you think the world obtains peace, another conflict starts.
@fortknoxguy
6 ай бұрын
The real Memphis Bell has been restored and is on display here in Dayton, Oh at the Air Force Museum. I think of this scene and other actual video clips whenever I see it. They have a lot more actual clips playing on monitors around the aircraft.
@veteran20002001
3 ай бұрын
Dear America Letters from the families.
@OrbitFallenAngel
8 ай бұрын
This is a very beautiful and powerful scene. Those letters are important and you can tell how much the Colonel respects each and every young man he sends up. He cares about them. I know that during WW2 the 8th Air Force lost 26,000 young men...that's more than the US Marines lost during WW2!!! Those brave and courageous young men went up knowing full well that they might not be coming back.... We owe those men so much for what they did for us all.. The courage and the sacrifice... God Bless Them All! 🇺🇸🙏❤💙
@stevesmitherman2981
Жыл бұрын
All incredibly brave selfless souls We are proud of them all
@granitesevan6243
Жыл бұрын
RAF Bomber Command crews average age was 21 and they had a 50% chance of surviving the War. They were also shunned after it was over and whispered about as though they were war criminals. I'm glad the Americans know how to treat their veterans; wish we gave even half of that respect in the UK
@liamphillips3753
7 ай бұрын
Those men will be absolutely devastated at the state of the planet today
@veteran20002001
3 ай бұрын
They didn't die for DEI!
@giankarlomanalo0907
3 жыл бұрын
The 25th mission of the memphis belle
@mitrooper
8 ай бұрын
May all these fallen Airmen rest in peace.
@jasonshuster4748
2 жыл бұрын
The shot at 2:34 took place over Muenster, Germany on 10/10/43. That B-17 did go down but shot down 7 fighters
@DarkJak2050
2 жыл бұрын
2:03 to the end of the video is *actual footage* of B-17s getting attacked & shot down.
@willideus424
2 жыл бұрын
scary to know that there were men in those planes, and those were most likely there final moments
@asianbandit4054
2 жыл бұрын
did some digging and found out that the footage most likely came from Jagdgeschwader 50 "JG 50" a German Fighter Wing based near Stuttgart. I could be 1,000 times wrong but from what I've read it seems to be the most likely source. I say this because the footage clearly shows B-17 getting torn apart which to me says Bf109 with 30mm autocannons. Plus JG 50 was specifically tasked with hunting down B-17s.
@jamesmasztalerz5930
Жыл бұрын
I have 24 crews up there, they are all special to me
@Noonespecial237
Жыл бұрын
We have not found a better way, we are not even looking.
@yoowan3437
2 жыл бұрын
great scene
@ZFKATNBADGER40
4 ай бұрын
73% of all U.S bomber crewmen died in WWII.
@einhander876
2 жыл бұрын
2:48 kinda got me, I noticed none of the guns are moving nor seem to be firing on that bomber………
@Beuwen_The_Dragon
9 ай бұрын
In the original Un-cut gun cam footage, prior to its showing in the scene.. They were moving… Till they weren’t…
@Tank50us
8 ай бұрын
@@Beuwen_The_Dragon 30mm and 20mm cannon shells take no prisoners unfortunately. Worse yet is that the poor sod in the ball was probably alive, but lost power to his turret... which meant when the bomber eventually went down....
@phillydelphia8760
7 ай бұрын
@@Tank50us as the guns were directly down, there's a good chance the gunner wasn't in the turret at that moment.
@Tank50us
7 ай бұрын
@@phillydelphia8760 or it got jammed there while he was tracking another target. But yeah, if you're right, and he angled it to get out, there were several tracers that hit in that area where he'd be, so there's a good chance he got out of the turret... only to be shredded by weapons fire through the fuselage.
@phillydelphia8760
7 ай бұрын
@@Tank50us have you got a thing for that specific guy getting shredded or something? It's equally possible that those rounds deflect or detonate on the various pieces of equipment before coming near the turret station. As there is a good amount of plane and equipment in between. Equal chance someone got hit, as well as it entirely missing the individual crewmen, slow fire rate and lower velocity and all. It's impossible to say. Ordinance can do crazy things when it hits metal. It just seems that when there's luftwaffe gun cams involved, people can get a little weird when talking about the people down range and what might be happening to them.
@midnyte6195
2 жыл бұрын
In All this,if they hadn't been sent to they're deaths, those letters wouldn't be sent out stopping the home coming from happening 😠
@tommyatkins2527
Жыл бұрын
WhT that officer didn't realise was they were all heroes
@Alex-qw5dm
Жыл бұрын
And that is why that officer made him read all the letters
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