Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!uunet!samsung!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!sdd.hp.com!ucsd!pacbell.com!pacbell!att!cbnews!military From: shafer@skipper.dfrf.nasa.gov (Mary Shafer) Newsgroups: sci.military Subject: Re: Piece of Cake Message-ID: <1990Aug9.020200.9146@cbnews.att.com> Date: 9 Aug 90 02:02:00 GMT Sender: military@cbnews.att.com (William B. Thacker) Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories Lines: 34 Approved: military@att.att.com From: Mary Shafer Mark Miller (msmiller@gonzoville.East.Sun.COM) writes: |>From: Mary Shafer |>I'm not trying to stop the discussion about Spitfire marks and the |>Battle of Britian, but I have to point out that "Piece of Cake" is |>written about a Hurricane squadron. However, it was switched to |>Spits for the television version because there weren't enough flying |>Hurricanes available. The way I heard it was that the museum that had the Hurri's (maybe an RAF museum) didn't want to give the planes because of the way the pilots were portrayed (which was considerring unflattering by UK standards). I certainly won't claim that the people with the Hurri's were enthusiastic, but two Hurri's do not an epic make. At the time of filming there were two or possibly three _flying_ Hurricanes available in the entire world, each owned by a separate organization. I think they're a little skosh with six Spitfires and can't imagine how it work with only two Hurricanes. BTW the Hurricanes that Hornet Sqn took to France had fabric-covered wings. There's a touching scene in the book where Rex tries to bribe CH3 (the Yank) into acquiescence with the latest, metal-skinned mark. -- Mary Shafer shafer@skipper.dfrf.nasa.gov ames!skipper.dfrf.nasa.gov!shafer NASA Ames Dryden Flight Research Facility, Edwards, CA Of course I don't speak for NASA "A MiG at your six is better than no MiG at all"--Unknown US fighter pilot