Not sure if any of you are watching "Masters of the Air" on AppleTV+, but for those of you who are WWII junkies like me, it's becoming must-watch content. Tom Hanks' production company, Playtone, seems to really understand how to convey a sense for the bravery of that generation.
Many people don't fully recognize how perilous these bombing missions were. We're used to seeing the exploits of the Army/Marine Corps during WWII (deservedly so), but not a lot of people understand how impactful the USAF was to our war effort, and how so many heroes' stories were never told simply because they ended abruptly at 20,000 feet. Among the characters of the show is the incredible engineering of the B-17 itself, and its ability to stay flying after sustaining extensive damage. My grandfather worked on B-17's at the Willow Run Assembly plant and talked often how they were built to fly completely broken. He would have loved this series. The U.S. bombing strategy changed quite a bit during those years. Before 1943, only 16% of bombs fell within 1200 feet of their aiming point. The Norden bombsight changed things for the 8th Air Force in March of 1943 (interestingly it was originally developed for the Navy and they gave up on it in favor of dive bombing). Even still, in 1943, the average lifespan of a B17 was only 11 missions with crews exposed to a 10% death rate (American crews had a much higher daytime bale out rate than their British counterparts who bombed at night and were exposed to a 40% mortality rate). The advent of disposable fuel tanks on P-47's and then the P-51 long-range fighter spelled doom for Germany as bombing formations could be defended over German air space. But considering the airmen who flew undefended in 1943/1944, it's hard to grasp their courage.
Masters of the Air does a great job in examining not just the pressure on airmen and officers who took on the burden of daylight bombing, but also the almost certain violence these heroes were exposed to in making these runs in daylight. Coming back from defended areas of France and Germany usually meant a damaged plane and casualties.
Is it as good as Band of Brothers? I'll let you decide. I hold BoB as the ultimate WWII production in terms of character development and authenticity. But MOTA is exceptional by every measure.
