Jump to content

History channel's Air Aces.


Recommended Posts

Just wondering if any other ARCers have been watching the History Channel's Air Aces series. The latest episode was on Robin Olds and Operation Bolo. Before that it was George Beurling, Douglas Bader and the Red Tails Tuskegee Airmen. Has CGI that looks very similar to the Dogfight series. Finally nice to see stuff other than Ice Road Truckers, Pawn Stars, American Pickers and other so called reality tv series that put you to sleep.

Link to post
Share on other sites

been watching it too. I fnd the CGI much better than Dogfights, better details, more accurate markings and moving control surfaces, the next 2 are about a Lancaster crew, and then Gabby Gabreski.

Yeah CC. I've notice the CGI is more realistic in Air Aces. I can't wait to see the next two episodes. Hopefully they'll continue the series with other Aces from the Axis side and from WW1.

Link to post
Share on other sites

and the WW2 Soviets. There was just a bit of a skirmish in the air over the East Front. :rolleyes:/>

Some early WW2 (France, Poland, BoB) and Winter War aces would be a nice change too.

As far as numbers go, highest scoring allied aces were VVS fighters. I just wish they don't air at some odd ball time slot like they did for Dogfights. Staying up until 4 in the morning is no fun.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanks for the heads-up about this show. Other than sports and a few select shows I'm about ready to give up on TV. I think I may have seen a reality show on Nat Geo channel. It might be time to get a Roku box or AppleTV.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Interesting how they point out some of the personality conflicts.

I hope that they do cover as many pilots from all sides as they can. And hopefully from all eras.

To be honest, I'd pretty much stopped watching History Channel. I'd take a look, see that it was hand fishing gator hunters that pick over antiques up while visiting pawn shops and go back to surfing ARC/Britmodeller/LSP etc etc.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I started watching this show with the Buzz Buerling episode. I find it quite informative; I knew something about these guys, but the series presents it in an interesting manner that fills in many details you can't easily find in a history book.

I suspect it's on the Canadian History Channel only. The focus has been heavy on Canadian Air Aces (Buerling), or those associated with Canada (Douglas Bader commanded a Canadian squadron in the RAF), and others. Most American-produced history shows tend to forget that there were other nationalities involved - not meaning to be nasty about it, but that's what I've observed about the teaching of history in the USA.

When I was living in Battle Creek, Michigan for a year (at age 8), I got a question "wrong" on the history test. To the question "When did World War II start?", I wrote in September, 1939. My teacher marked it wrong - apparently WW II only started on December 7th, 1941. My father straightened her out - and this was in the 60s, way before the era of entitled kids and parents who would attack the teacher before admitting Junior maybe made a mistake. She was quite apologetic, and admitted to being vaguely aware that the rest of the world was at war for 2 years before the USA was drawn in by Japan - she had just never really made the connection that WW II had started in 1939.

Having said that, I'm looking forward to watching the Tuskegee airmen, and other international stories.

Does anyone here watch Bomb Girls on Wednesday nights (I think it's on Global)? This show is a great dramatisation of civilian life in Canada during WW II. The decor, uniforms, hairstyles, and especially the mores and prejudices evident in the show all have a ring of authenticity to them. I think it's a really well-done show.

ALF

Link to post
Share on other sites

ALF, I too found them much more informative with small details of their lives given by first hand account by living friends and family members. I haven't paid too much attention to Bomb Girls for the reason that I thought it would be too much dramatization to capture a younger audience but will now give it a look.

I wasn't sure if Air Aces is avaliable right now for the US viewers but seeing that producers are Shaw, a Canadian cable company, it might be the reason why it isn't. However, our US cousins should email requests for it to their History Channel. Hopefully, they'll get to see it soon and having a larger US audience may help the series get extended.

Link to post
Share on other sites

The Douglas Bader episode jumped out for me as I read his book back in grade 9 English during a free reading period. I LOVED THE BOOK and Bader's story.

There is old RAF WWII film footage, if one saw the pilot on top of his Spitfire flipping up his legs over the small door, THAT'S BADER getting into his MKV.

Edited by Les / Creative Edge Photo
Link to post
Share on other sites

The Douglas Bader episode jumped out for me as I read his book back in grade 9 English during a free reading period. I LOVED THE BOOK and Bader's story.

There is old RAF WWII film footage, if one saw the pilot on top of his Spitfire flipping up his legs over the small door, THAT'S BADER getting into his MKV.

Yeah the Bader episode was remarkable and that footage you mentioned was in that episode.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Air Aces History channel

linky

Looks like they are doing an episode on Robin Olds Has commercials..sorry about that.

Video link

Yeah the Robin Olds episode played this past Monday up here in Canada. It too was great as I also read about Operation Bolo many years ago.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Wow, hadn't even heard of this. After Pawn Stars, American Pickers, Axe Men, etc., I had kind of given up on the History Channel to actually cover anything historical. Thanks for the info!

I wasn't sure if Air Aces is avaliable right now for the US viewers but seeing that producers are Shaw, a Canadian cable company, it might be the reason why it isn't. However, our US cousins should email requests for it to their History Channel. Hopefully, they'll get to see it soon and having a larger US audience may help the series get extended.

I have absolutely NO FAITH, at all, whatsoever, on the current regime that is currently running History Channel (US) into the ground, to put on anything that is worth watching.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Finally nice to see stuff other than Ice Road Truckers, Pawn Stars, American Pickers and other so called reality tv series that put you to sleep.

Oh come on now, how can anyone not enjoy, pawn stars, cajun pawn stars, mid-west pawn stars, deep south pawn stars, mexican pawn stars, the girls of pawn stars, all "must watch tv". I had the opportunity to bend the ear of tv representative of History Television that was trying to sell the value of their products. I told her that I would pay extra to remove their channel from my tv package if possible. She asked why, and I explained that pickers, canadian pickers, nose pickers, ice road truckers, etc. Have little historic value in my eyes, it was explained to me that these (low budget) shows are referred to as history in the making programming. I told her I'd still pass.

The Air Aces program is still pretty good, the best we are going to get for the next little while anyway. My son and I have watched every episode.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Oh come on now, how can anyone not enjoy, pawn stars, cajun pawn stars, mid-west pawn stars, deep south pawn stars, mexican pawn stars, the girls of pawn stars, all "must watch tv". I had the opportunity to bend the ear of tv representative of History Television that was trying to sell the value of their products. I told her that I would pay extra to remove their channel from my tv package if possible. She asked why, and I explained that pickers, canadian pickers, nose pickers, ice road truckers, etc. Have little historic value in my eyes, it was explained to me that these (low budget) shows are referred to as history in the making programming. I told her I'd still pass.

The Air Aces program is still pretty good, the best we are going to get for the next little while anyway. My son and I have watched every episode.

Oh, I see... History in the Making. Sounds to me like the guy who told you that started working at the History Channel after being fired for having bought "Voice of Fire" for the National Gallery in Ottawa! Or maybe it was his cousin...

ALF

Link to post
Share on other sites

Oh come on now, how can anyone not enjoy, pawn stars, cajun pawn stars, mid-west pawn stars, deep south pawn stars, mexican pawn stars, the girls of pawn stars, all "must watch tv". I had the opportunity to bend the ear of tv representative of History Television that was trying to sell the value of their products. I told her that I would pay extra to remove their channel from my tv package if possible. She asked why, and I explained that pickers, canadian pickers, nose pickers, ice road truckers, etc. Have little historic value in my eyes, it was explained to me that these (low budget) shows are referred to as history in the making programming. I told her I'd still pass.

History in the making?! I dread to see what would be in a history textbook in the year 2113. A chapter on how Chumlee saved Rick and Cory Harrison from investing in a Picaso fake that would have cause economic collapse for the World famous Gold and Silver pawn shop that would have lead to a global depression. Then another chapter on how heroine Danielle Colby Cushman leads Mike Wolf and Frank Fritz into a great battle with an old geezer hoarder to repatriate a vintage 1950's historical artifact of great importance to the American culture. Then there's the chapter on the great battle of truckers on the ice road for the glorious golden jacket of the north. The next chapter would be on a civil war between Pawnstars and Cajun pawnstars when Rick Harrison and Jimmie DeRamus couldn't come to terms on the value of the pretzel that almost choked President George W. Bush. Finally in the Canadian version of the textbook, the chapter on how Scott Cozens and Sheldon Smithens betrays Canada by selling the country's most valuable treasures to the Chinese. This devastates the country's national security when tons of fake Bob and Doug McKenzie toques flood the world. In a few Americanized version of the Canadian textbook, the word "toques" is replaced with "beanies".

It took me so long for this reply because I had to google the names of people in the shows mentioned. So since the info was in the worldwide web, they are probably history in the making. However just like elementary / grammar school history, those shows put me to sleep. If tv representative is right, it looks like the movie "Idiocracy" might be a foretelling of the future human race. Please save the dumbing down of the world now and demand shows like Air Aces, Dogfights, Patton 360, etc. replace those so called "history in the making" shows!

Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...