B-17 Bomber Crash During Filming of Memphis Belle.

[TheGalwayFarmer]

not as bad as 663 Squadron where Mosquitoes were destroyed on purpose. And that WAS a shit film!

[TheGalwayFarmer]

hahahahah Harry Gration!!

[19thSFGA]

Movie sucked ! waste of a good plane.

[19thSFGA]

this is shite why bother

[ak7wyf]

@19thSFGA fuck you!

[19thSFGA]

@ak7wyf Ha Ha little queer boy

[phambo101]

Why do they still flying these ancient craps? WW II is more than sixty years over, there are no more ballbearing plants to destroy, more joyriders will die in those damn things and it's time to park them...THE MOVIE IS CRAP AS WELL!!!

[ian8354]

@phambo101 They still fly these aircraft to keep a close reminder in your head what they fought for during the war, if it wasn't for the RAF-USAF- Army-Marines-Churchill-Rooseve­lt to stand against Germany, you would now be living behind very tall concrete walls with maybe a gun pointing at you or maybe you would have never been born because your ancestors were shot dead for no reason. **RESPECT THESE MEN OR SHUT UP**

[s6u6r6f6]

this wasnt supposed to be filmed. This was a joy ride....mustve been some hot movie interns wanting to be impressed. waste of a good airplane...the movie sucked too. ask any veteran they'd tell you This crew if they actually acted like they did in the movie would have been sent to the infantry. The screenplay sucked. the script sucked and they pranged a perfectly good B-17 joy-riding. ...Hollywood sucks no matter how you cut it...just ask Vic Norrow.

[HuskyMaxx]

I flew on the B-17 'Nine-Oh-Nine' a few years back out of Orange County (SoCal) airport. It was amazing. Never knew it would shake like that, and when the tail wheel came up and kept spinning right next to your feet, you paid attention.

One of those days I'll never forget.

Very sad to see one crash like this. And, in the end, the movie was not very good.

[ian8354]

I wonder what they did with the crashed B17 ??

[doginstine]

Auh that wasnot the real Memphis Belle. The real one is on display in Memphis Tenn.

[LibertyBelle7]

@doginstine Of course it's not. They used this plane because the real Memphis Belle was on display. Theres a movie named Memphis Belle and they used that plane to pretend to be the Memphis Belle in the movie.

[hoppinonabronzeleg]

A real shame, 13/6/2011 The real Memphis Belle goes up in flames - Always sad when warbirds crash. Good that noone was hurt, or killed

[cdrc2004]

Interesting. Thanks for posting!

[xfire7]

Didn`t know about this.Liberty belle went this week.....a great loss.

[SittingMooseShaman]

...keep th' cameras rollin'! use the film-clip in post-production...

[BossHossGT500]

The tail looks like it could be saved. Was it?

[devilsmarksman]

@wwmb43 i dont know what ur smoking but i was in hawaii at the time of filming the air raid scene and saw it hit the tree first hand

[wwmb43]

@devilsmarksman funny I don't smoke ...

but for the p40 i not see any thing on news about loss on that film

only a loss of a tora tora replica

[Blackout60800]

As wonderful as the B 17 is, i'm not overly surprised it crashed, french owned and operated, dosen't bode well, even in this century, its 'premier airline crashed a concorde, two a340's and an a320 in the same year. RIP Concorde, long live the Vulcan.

[wwmb43]

@Blackout60800

remember sally b and mary alice are ex french owned b17 (in uk)

if not french no b17

[devilsmarksman]

@salexlindsay i totaly agree about the pearl harbor thing but actualy they lost 2 p-40s during filming one cliped a tree the other stalled and crashed in the ocean

[wwmb43]

@devilsmarksman

no not true

[Eleanorfan1992]

Why are they using vintage aircraft? If those movie makers have so fucking much money make a new one and SAVE the old ones

[mosquito1958]

@Eleanorfan1992 The Mephis Bell was filmed well before decent CGi was convincing enough so they had no choice but to use either remote control models or library filming of the period or the remaining flying ones.

As for making a new one you must be joking, can you imagine the logistics envolved to recreate a WW2 bomber? The tool dies and the factory production line?? nothing remains to build new one accept repair or re-cycle the remaining ones !!

[yamahonkawazuki]

@mosquito1958 Aye they just dont exist. id love for someone to build a big b from scrap, err scratch, i just dont see it happening though.

[wwmb43]

@mosquito1958

not entirely true the recent "restoration" of tom reilly are a lot in this direction

es the complete reskinning of paul allen b17e the revorking of the ex

five engine test bed also eavlly damaged from a tornado

pratically cut in half the desert rat recostruction from

a cut in five 5 part xc108(b17e) and so on

a long term project also is the complete recostruction of an

early small tail b17d mary ann

[wellington53]

The video is poor quality because it was origanally taken on a stanard VHS camcorder and then when I got it, it had been copied onto another VHS tape.

[terryjohn]

@wellington53 july 88 crashed

[carlosmurphy4u]

Poor poor quality vid.

[granddad2002]

The video is so awful in graphic quality.

[wellington53]

We just set the camera up in front of the tv, The actual footage was filmed with one of the members of the local fire crew who had to be on site when filming was in prosess.

[terryjohn]

were did you film this on news , .I got some news also loads.

[TheNERFDUDE97]

was it the memphis?

[pramboy09]

@TheNERFDUDE97 the real memphis belle wasn't used on the film

[TheGalwayFarmer]

@TheNERFDUDE97 no, Lincolnshire. Similar though...

[ziggster59]

So much is told about this plane and barely a thing about Ol'Gappy 524thBS 379thBG(H) that flew 167 missions,the record over all! My late uncle was the ground crew chief on her.

Kinda wrong especially since the Belle really wasn't the 1st to go 25 as has been said.It was due to Bassingborn being closer to London and thats why Wilder went there,not Molesworth.

Lazy bum!

[Lockbar]

What a horrible movie, The "Memphis Bell" film, I mean. Too bad a B-17 had to be sacraficed for that crap.

[yonpolite]

O GOOD DEAD INDEED FOR A B-17....

[Cool2BCeltic]

Very lucky that everyone got out OK.

[nilsie1000]

very sad

[lonewulf44]

Very Very sad ...

[xazoulini1]

omg poor girl:(

[LGTheOneFreeMan]

I'd like to see the NTSB get the papers on that one from boeing!!!

[ermollejuo]

damm, these airplanes were design to save live till the last moment, just by watching old films and the condition these airplane were arriving from war.

[phatmatt7898]

this plane was more important than the movie

[grooveclubhouse]

Thats the Fort for you. Always getting her crew home.

[19thSFGA]

Fucking french bollock up everything they bloody put there hands to.

[SuperAncientmariner]

I forgot to add that the director kept the cameras rolling and used it in the film...talk about not wasting it!

[grooveclubhouse]

@SuperAncientmariner I always wondered about that. Its been a while since I have seen the movie. What part is it?

[SuperAncientmariner]

@grooveclubhouse Its near the start when the planes are returning and the last one crashes. Models were used for the crash but the real burning aircraft was the footage used after the explosion.

[SuperAncientmariner]

Actually a lot of the flying sequences were filmed over my local ares. great fun watching them.

[SuperAncientmariner]

What is meant by "the crew men were not accurate"? ......didn't they have enough legs or something...? The biggest laugh is that the Memphis Belle was not the first 8th AF bomber to complete 25 missions.

[Eirik36]

why didnt the hells angels not get alot of credit?

[SuperAncientmariner]

@SuperAncientmariner Are you refering to the bomber Hells Angel. There were about 3or 4 8th AF bombers that had completed the tour at the time when Ford was making his documentary, and I think Memphis Belle drew the lucky straw for the featured plane.

[TBM3EAvenger]

@SuperAncientmariner well if the "Memphis Belle wasn't the first to complete 25 missions which one was don't make sweeping statements, if you can't back up your claim., and it wasn't so much about the bomber completing 25 missions, but more about the crew having completed 25 missions.

[SuperAncientmariner]

@TBM3EAvenger The first was 41-24577, "Hell Angels" of 358 BS, 303rd BG based at Molesworth. She completed on May 13th 43 and her pilot was the first officer to complete 25.

The Belle was wrongly credited because Wyler , when making his film had the choice and as the Belle had just finished hers , he chose her. Hells Angels went on to do many more missions with a different crew.

It was'nt a sweeping statement, people should research more.

[TBM3EAvenger]

@SuperAncientmariner Thank you for clearing that up for us, next time put the information in the first post you make then you won't get comments from smart-asses like me LOL, thank you again and I mean that with sincerity

[SuperAncientmariner]

@TBM3EAvenger S'allright

[Bodneyblue]

B-17F #41-24577, 358th Hell's Angels, was the 1st B-17 to complete 25 missions.

The Belle was second. The reason the Belle got choosen was because those in charge thought the name not to taste for the Bond Tour back in the US...so the Belle was choosen because they the name would go down better with the US public.

[miltonluvsno1]

Such tragic, I'm glad no one got hurt, but this plane was vintage and such a beautiful plane, you can hear the soothing hum as it takes off and then its destroyed...

[kevinkmny]

That's the difference between a movie and a documentary.... If it's accuracy you're after watch the latter.

[SuperAncientmariner]

@Eirik36 Its called artistic license. And the one that crashed WAS an F model and didn't have a chin turret. Sally B and the other 2 were Gs that had to have the chin removed. They only had 4 B17s and had different nose art on each side of the nose.

[LCPStud]

It's a movie you twit. You mean they had to cut some corners to make a movie about an airplane that has only like less than 5 flying examples left in the WORLD??

The HORROR!!

Stop trying to impress everyone with your nit-picking... you just come across as a fricken dork.

[Eirik36]

sorry for having respect, sorry for being interested in WWII aviation, i didnt know i had to get your approval for everything i say on youtube u dumb fuck. Look at the other comments i guarantee that there are paragraphs about the movie. just b/c there is only apx 5 still able to fly there is plenty of pics, planes in museums and other resources to make a more historically accurate movie. And guess what b/c of this damn movie, one of the planes crashed during take off

[LCPStud]

@Eirik36

Well, as long as you know NOW that you need my approval for what you post on here, I suppose we are OK.

Go ahead and send me a message with your planned comments and I will edit as needed.

[damafia29]

id luv sum of the rc planes they used in this film they are so big you need an actual pilots licence to fly an rc plane

[grumpypant]

May this be a curse to those who put shame on the blood-shedding service men and women who fought and died for my freedom...

God bless America!!!

[grumpypant]

Shamed on you, Hollywood, for your greedy inaccurrated contribution about a historical relic!

Rest in peace, Capt. Morgan!!!

[grumpypant]

The filming deserved that crash; the movie is crapped and inaccurrated...

Any aviation buff will tell you that the 'Belle flew all those dangerous missions WITHOUT one single "injury"...the belly ball turrent never fell out, no Me-109 crashed onto it, etc...

[Herbymac0811]

For such an amazing old warhorse to have lived so long and then to go out like that just aint right !

[ckolonko]

Young Harry Greshan

[antimatterXXXIII]

@rgoshen79 moron

[rickbar123]

The B-17 is a MIGHTY PLANE

The B-17 is a MIGHTY LADY

AS MIGHTY AS THE BRAVE MEN THAT FLEW HER

LONG LIVE THE MEN OF THE MIGHTY

8th

[DerGergl]

@rickbar123

/cruise

[hamrite]

Filming by a brit makes it dangerous

[edj66]

@hamrite Whereas filming by Americans just makes it rubbish. Pearl Harbour for instance.

[taterfamine]

rebuild her!!!

[jamieduff1981]

It was 20 years ago now, and there was little left to rebuild back then!

[MegaThrowaway]

At least she died an honorable death: IMO - better that than being sold for scrap...

[pkbay]

@MegaThrowaway Honorable? your full of shit

[pramboy09]

@MegaThrowaway i doubt very much she would have been sold for scrap cosidering by the time she did crash she was worth at least a couple of million dollars,

[mitsucanter247365]

@MegaThrowaway honorable death? An honorable death would be to be lost in battle serving her purpose.

Not for a film.

[I85PIES]

@MegaThrowaway

It would never have been sold for scrap. This accident happened in 1989, recent enough for it's sale value as a B17 to far exceed its value as a heap of scrap metal

[xylaphonemaster]

@I85PIES Indeed, a remarkable ammount of money has been put into keeping reminders of our more heroic days in the skies. The Battle of Britain memorial flight, "Vulcan to the skies" which got an Avro Vulcan back to airshows decades after it's retirement, and many other aircraft. The few left are worth so much more than scrap now, they're part of a cultural heritage.

[Vegasoon]

For god's sake just cut some government waste and pay Boeing to make a hundred new B17s.

[TBM3EAvenger]

@Vegasoon Good idea they've done it in Russia with WWII fighters I forget the type I want to say Yak 3's not sure though, and look at the "new build" Me262's and FW 190's, it all boils down to money.

[halffliffe]

sad to see it crash, these planes are ireplacible

[Andypilot333]

The AAIB report points at engine problems on 3 and 4 causing a power loss at take-off power, and the commander thinks the right brake may have been binding too.........

[mhatlie]

Why do they break it off? They show the beginning of the crash three times, but never the whole crash. Poor editing.

[365fg]

If you reada bit... you would see that there were acouple of incidents in Pear Harbor (spelling, PLEASE) an A6M crashed into a palm tree and got whiped out, it was a full size replica, however it happened.

[jamieduff1981]

It was a tarted up T6... I find it comical that you've commented on spelling and then spelled the title "Pear Harbor". Lol

[TheCanine2]

@salexlindsay I agree that the movie "Pearl Harbor" was a big disappointment. I think it goes beyond risky flying sequences. Memphis Belle is a fine movie. I consider myself very forunate to have been on a walk through of a still functioning B-17 a couple years ago. And my 6 year old boy was with me. He may be one of the few people to have done that when he's my age. My understanding is that there are only 7 flying planes left.

[DodgeViperACRX]

@TheCanine2 they restored 6 more sence 2007 now theres 13 B17's that can fly, and 2 B24's that can fly, and 1 flyable B29 but theats the Enola Gay so theres no way that will be flying any time soon

[TheCanine2]

@DodgeViperACRX

Hey that's good to know, and encouraging. Must be hard to find B-17 parts, though...I'd have thought most of them were "recycled" by now.

[DodgeViperACRX]

@TheCanine2 na there keeping them around for airshows and museums, because their such a big part of WW2 and American history

[TBM3EAvenger]

@DodgeViperACRX The "Enola Gay is in the Smithsonian and will never fly, I believe the B-29 you're referring to is "Fifi" and as of August she took to the air once again,after all 4 of her engines were replaced with more reliable units, there's also a second B-29 "Doc" that is being restored to airworthiness, this is said to be the last B-29 that's capable of being restored to flight, so looks like the cap on B-29's will be two flyable when "Doc"s done.

[kenns9]

@salexlindsay

dont forget Tora, Tora,Tora!

[PitbuyllGamingHounds]

@salexlindsay so they wrecked the real memphis belle?

[wwmb43]

@PitbuyllGamingHounds

no

[DavidJSpurling]

@salexlindsay Really? I don't think people should take dangerous risks in order to make films, the tragedy that befell the children who died in the making of the twilight movie is a good example of why.

also i think that you can make good looking films without the need to take dangerous risks, you're right that sfx and cgi can be too overused but i think its best when film makers use every technique available to achieve the desired effect, gladiator and black hawk down are some examples.

[fladewarn]

Very sad when a beautiful warbird like that is destroyed, but it happens at airshows too, it can happen anywhere. Have to a say i love the Memphis Belle, i know its not the greatest film, but i still love it. The soundtrack is superb and its not a CGI fest like more modern films. I would loved to have been at Binbrook when this was being filmed. 5 B17s, 6 p51 Mustangs and 3 HA1112 Buchons (BF109G's with Merlin engines. What a sight and what a sound!

[Andypilot333]

They filmed the fighter scenes from Duxford.

[danjama]

memphis belle is probably my favourite film of all time

shame about the B17 but theres still a few around.

im surprised they didnt stop filming after this.

[apatheticempathy]

sad thing was the FILM SUCKED and was dumb. The plane coverage was beauitiful, but to destroy a RARE flying aircraft. Just STUPID !!!

[Iwannaseenakedchicks]

Yeah, but the crash could have happened at any time, not just because of the film. Any chance to fly the classic planes for whatever reason is a good opportunity. Would you rather the owners just keep it in a mausoleum hanger? Risk has always been part of flight.

[galvenizedsteel]

you suck, and are stupid. The movie was a great tribute to the bomber crews.

stop bitching and shake a bomber crews hand, or put a six-pack on one of their graves.

[apatheticempathy]

i shit bigger than you

[maximpetergriffin]

i was playing at a friends house a mile down the round when this took place and my brother was an extra in the film ...

[Hihonyr8811]

Wow I remember this!

Can remember how shocked but pleased everyone was that all the crew (plus a coulple of students) all made it out in, relatively, one peice.

Shame about the B-17 though, but thank goodness noone was more seriously hurt than a broken leg!!

There's also a bit about the crash at East Kirkby aviation museum, if anyone is interested.

Great to see the old Look North opening too :D lol

[bladerj]

bah,people can be substituted, and we have a stock of 6 billion,those planes are irreplaceble.

[rustyz123]

Good video but a tragedy. Thanks for finding this footage.