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JG300-Ascout · Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2013 5:38 pm Post subject: The "918th" Bomb Group...

aka: the 306th Bomb Group

I'm guessing BSmart knew all about this. "Tsk, Tsk" for not telling us about it sooner. Wink

The airfield for the movie's flying, taxiing, other field shots were the former Ozark Field, today Cairns Army Airfield at "MotherRucker" (Ft. Rucker, Alabama, the busiest airfield in the Army). It had been a USAAF/USAF field that was surplused to the Army and had been disused for some time when the film was made. This is reflected in the opening scenes of "12 O'Clock High" when "Maj. Stovall" visits his old haunt. It's easily visible in great detail on Google Earth today, but which runway was active then I can't say. Other sequences (mostly on the ground not featuring the runway) were at Eglin AFB.

bsmart · Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 4:04 am Post subject: Re: The "918th" Bomb Group...

I always liked 12'Oclock High both the movie and the book but I didn't know the 'backstory'

JG300-Ascout · Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 5:49 am Post subject: Re: The "918th" Bomb Group...

- bsmart

I always liked 12'Oclock High both the movie and the book but I didn't know the 'backstory'

Thought you might, which is why I mentioned you.

12 O'Clock High (the film, not the Quinn Martin made-for-TV series with Robert Lansing) was a superb movie about the dark days of '43 when no bomber crew could expect to complete 25 missions, mathematically. Seldom mentioned are the hundreds of planes that miraculously landed and were interned in Sweden for various "mechanical problems". By '44, you couldn't land a J-3 at Swedish bases for all the B-17s, B-24's and Lancasters that had diverted there (the British used the public humiliation diagnosis of "LMF" (lack of moral fiber) to which the family and friends of Brit airmen were subjected to. This was harsh, as the Americans were facing the same unbeatable odds, but much less was said about it (probably a management decision to minimize publicity about it). Threats to have American fighters shoot down American bombers that strayed proved to be a hollow threat. Who can say what one would do if you thought your number was up and you'd seen most of your squadron, wing, group, whatever dispatched from the skies ahead of you over just a few missions.

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