Spitfire 944
| Company type | Documentary film |
|---|---|
| Industry | Film |
| Founded | 2006 |
| Founder | William Lorton |
| Products | Documentary short film |
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Spitfire 944 is a brief documentary featuring 83-year-old World War II aviator John S. Blyth as he watches 16mm footage of his 1944 Spitfire crash-landing for the first time, more than six decades after the incident.[1]
Behind the scenes
In October 2005, filmmaker William Lorton came into possession of two suitcases filled with 16mm home movies recorded by his great uncle, James R. Savage, MD., who served as a flight surgeon with the US Army Air Corps during World War II. Among the three hours of wartime footage, the most striking scene captured was the crash landing of a Spitfire Mk XI at RAF Mount Farm in Great Britain. Captain Savage, acting as the base flight surgeon, was forewarned of the imminent accident and wisely brought his camera to document the event on the airstrip.
By entering the Spitfire’s tail number into Google, Lorton quickly identified the crash date and location along with the pilot’s identity: John S. Blyth.
Lorton then reached out to LtCol. Blyth via letter to request a general interview about his World War II aviation experiences. Blyth responded positively, though Lorton withheld mention of the discovered film until their meeting approximately two weeks later near Tacoma, Washington. After a three-hour discussion about Blyth’s wartime service, Lorton showed him roughly one minute of footage. Blyth was taken aback to witness his perilous landing from over six decades earlier.
Critical dimensions
Lorton aimed to illustrate a man’s reaction when unexpectedly confronted with moving images depicting the most hazardous moment of his life—an event that occurred during a significant historical period before consumer video technology existed. Blyth and his family later remarked that his "Spitfire Crash-Landing" tale had been retold so frequently it was sometimes dismissed as an exaggerated story. The film definitively dispels such doubts.
The documentary presents a layered narrative: it shows a veteran reviewing a photographic record of his own photographic mission (a wartime photo-reconnaissance sortie) spanning 61 years. Included are several original high-altitude reconnaissance photographs taken by Blyth himself.
Historical context
Lieutenant Blyth flew with the United States Army Air Corps' 14th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron stationed at RAF Mount Farm, UK. Initially, he piloted a photo reconnaissance variant of the Lockheed P-38 Lightning (designated "F-5" by the US Army Air Corps). His squadron later transitioned to using British Spitfire Mk XI aircraft, which were better adapted for high-altitude operations in low-temperature environments compared to their American counterparts.[2]
This incident was not Blyth’s first crash. On October 31, 1943, due to equipment malfunction and poor visibility caused by haze, he attempted to land at RAF Thame but was unable to stop in time, resulting in an accident.[3]
Media Coverage
- Soren Andersen, "Pilot’s Passion for Spitfire Proved Beneficial," Tacoma News Tribune, 29 March 2007
- Anthony Breznican, "Highlights from Sundance," USA Today, 29 January 2007
- Chris De Benedetti, "Authentic Bay Area Films at Sundance Festival," Oakland Tribune, 16 January 2007
- Jeff Sneider, "Short Films Lineup Revealed at Sundance Festival," Daily Variety, 6 December 2006
Accolades
- Received Honorable Mention in Short Filmmaking at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival
- Awarded Best Documentary Short at the 2008 GI Film Festival
References
- ↑ Patricia Fussell Keen (January 1996). "Eyes of the Eighth": a story of the 7th Photographic Reconnaissance Group, 1942–1945. CAVU Publishers. p. 178. ISBN 9780964911901.
- ↑ David Donald (2004). Air Combat Legends, Volume 1: Supermarine Spitfire, Messerschmitt Bf 109. AIRtime. p. 144. ISBN 978-1-880588-74-1.
- ↑ "John S Blyth ", Imperial War Museum American Air Museum in Britain. Retrieved 4 January 2019. This source has photos of Blyth and includes some of the reconnaissance photos he took.