The Commercial Airplane Reliability Tour in the United States. Several aircraft on the airfield at Ford Airport during the Commercial Airplane Reliability Tour. People moving about on the airfield. A group of men beside a scale weighing their baggages, on the airfield. A few men waiting with their baggages. Spectators behind a fence on the airfield. Several aircraft on the airfield. The people behind fence. The bunting-draped hangar in the background. A few men moving about in front of the hangar. The Ford trimotor on the airfield. Few men beside the aircraft. Henry Ford, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, and Edsel Ford, President of the Company, with Edsel's two sons, Henry II and Benson Ford on the airfield. Henry Ford and Edsel Ford with a few men beside the aircraft. Edsel Ford walks with his two sons to a vehicle. Edsel Ford and a few men on the airfield. One of the men holding a white flag. An aircraft comes in for landing. Another aircraft in flight. The group of men on the airfield. An aircraft is flagged off. A biplane taxiing on the airfield.
The Ford Reliability Tour at the Ford Airport in Dearborn, Michigan. A biplane lands and taxis on an airfield during the Ford Reliability Tour. Men beside the biplane. A large number of people gathered on the airfield. An aircraft in flight over the airfield. The aircraft on the airfield. Men beside the aircraft. Number '23' written on the aircraft. Two men walk away from the aircraft. Another aircraft lands on the airfield. Number '3' written on the aircraft. Two men beside the aircraft. Another man runs to the aircraft. Another aircraft on the airfield. A large crowd beside the airport building. A few men run to the aircraft. A man flags off an aircraft. Two other aircraft lands and taxis on the airfield. An aircraft with number '26' lands on the airfield. An aircraft lands on the airfield which has the number 6 on its tail. A few men watch the aircraft.
Ford Commercial Airplane Reliability Tour at Ford Airport in Dearborn, Michigan. An aircraft taking off from an airfield during the Ford Commercial Airplane Reliability Tour. Henry Ford, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, talking to another man on the airfield. A man walking behind them on the airfield. Henry Ford talking with a few men on the airfield. Henry Ford and another man standing beside an aircraft and looking into the aircraft. 'Ford' written on the aircraft. The two men walk away from the aircraft. Henry Ford standing and talking with a few men beside a vehicle. A trimotor on the airfield. 'U.S. Navy' written on the aircraft. The aircraft taxis on the airfield. Henry Ford and a few men standing and talking near a carriage on a field. Henry Ford with a few men beside a tractor. The men talking. Edsel Ford, President of the Ford Motor Company, on the airfield. Henry Ford, and a few men stand in a group and talk. Various views of the men talking on the airfield. A group of people stand in the background on the side of the airfield. Henry Ford points to the sky and talks to the other men. An aircraft in flight.
Aircraft landing during the National Air Tour in the United States. A biplane in flight from Schenectady, New York, during the National Air Tour. Another biplane in flight. The biplanes landing on the airfield at East Boston due to bad weather. A few men beside a biplane. Several aircraft on the airfield and the spectators watching the aircraft. Morris W. Titterington, inventor of Pioneer Earth Inductor compass, showing Pilot Geo Wies how to use compass in the instrument panel. Several people and aircraft on the airfield. An aircraft in flight over the airfield. The aircraft landing on the airfield. A man signals to the aircraft. The Ford trimotor taxiing on the airfield. Men getting out of the Ford trimotor. Edward P.Warner, Assistant Secretary for Aeronautics, with a few men. The group of men posing beside the Ford trimotor. Pilot Meyers with a monkey on his shoulder on the airfield. Several men and an aircraft behind the pilot. Pilot Eddie Stimson, who leads on points, posing with a little girl Rose Shlee, on the airfield. People looking at the aircraft lined up on the airfield.
A film on the Commercial Airplane Reliability Tour for the Edsel B Ford Trophy at Ford Airport in Dearborn, Michigan. Edsel B Ford, President of the Ford Motor Company, and R W Schroeder, former holder of World's Altitude Record, during the Commercial Airplane Reliability Tour for the Edsel B Ford Trophy, at the Ford Airport in Dearborn, Michigan. Edsel Ford, the official starter, with Schroeder beside a vehicle. Schroeder holding the white flag. Edsel Ford holding the white flag stands with the official staff of judges on the airfield. Several men on the airfield. Edsel Ford standing with a few men waves the flag. People moving about on the airfield. Edsel Ford standing with several men flags off an aircraft. The aircraft piloted by Walter Beech takes off. Edsel Ford flags off another aircraft piloted by Fred Melchoir and the aircraft has 'Junkers' written on it. A biplane prepares to take off from the airfield. Number '14' written on the biplane. Edsel Ford flags off the biplane. The biplane piloted by John Stauffer takes off. Another aircraft piloted by Earl Rowland is flagged off. Men beside the aircraft. Edsel Ford flags off an aircraft. 'Fokker' written on the aircraft. The Fokker aircraft piloted by E.P.Lott takes off from the airfield. A biplane piloted by Casey Jones is flagged off. Men beside the biplane. Edsel Ford flags off an aircraft piloted by Cy. Caldwell. A few men beside Edsel Ford. An aircraft piloted by L.B.Richardson is flagged off from the airfield. A Ford all-metal aircraft piloted by Edward G.Hamilton flagged off. The aircraft takes off from the airfield. A biplane piloted by E.A.Goff Jr. flagged off. Another biplane piloted by W.J.Addems flagged off. Several men on the airfield watch the aircraft taking off.
Film opens with animated map showing places in the Pacific near the island of Palau. A formation of U.S. B-24 Liberator bombers is seen in flight. Glimpse from the air of the Palau archipelago. Aerial view from a B-24 of its bombs exploding on the center of a Japanese airfield below. Aerial view of a U.S. Independence-class Aircraft carrier of Task Force 58. Officers and sailors on carrier island watch as a Grumman F4F Wildcat aircraft takes off .from the aircraft displays geometric marking on its tail, known as a "G-symbol." In this case it is a large white diamond containing the airplane number inside another diamond. (The United States Navy Pacific Fleet, assigned G-Symbols to the CV and CVL class carriers of Task Force 58. These were assigned to each carrier and appeared on all aircraft operating from it. ) A formation of Grumman TBF Avenger aircraft flying above clouds. Closeup of one with diamond G-symbol and number on its tail. Broad view from the air of TBF Avenger aircraft in flight and Navy warships maneuvering in waters below. Sea level views of some warships in the Third Fleet. One is a Portland-class Cruiser. Wide aerial view of ships in the task force. Cruisers and battleships bombarding Palau and nearby targets. Closeup of heavy cruiser USS Louisville (CA 28) firing her port side 5 inch 25 caliber guns and 40 mm A/A guns from the stern.. A TBF Avenger dive bombs a shore target. More views of warships with shells bursting in background. Shells bursting at the shoreline. Closeup glimpse of marines in landing craft U.S. Marine Corps LVT(A)4 Amphibious Tanks heading toward the beach on September 15, 1944. An LCI(L) Landing Craft Infantry (Large) firing close to shore. Shells striking shoreline installations. View from aircraft of landing craft speeding toward the beach and many more maneuvering offshore. Closeup of marines moving about on the shore of Palau with smoke rising and sounds of gunfire. A marine running through foliage at the shore. Marines manning a command post and communications center in the jungle. Marines firing rifles from a tree line. One firing a Browning M1919 machine gun and another throwing a hand grenade. Marines firing rifle grenades. Marines move forward and encounter a dead Japanese soldier lying next to his flame thrower. They reach the edge of the airfield, where two Japanese aircraft are just barely seen. They walk past dead Japanese at a machine gun emplacement. More views of Marines fighting at the edge of the airfield, and entering into the open area of the field, where fires are burning. .Wrecked Japanese aircraft are seen on the field. Marine infantry cross the field behind an M4 Sherman tank. Barges are seen carrying construction cranes and equipment to the island. A tracked crane drives onto the airfield. Bulldozers work on the edge of the airfield. A power shovel fills trucks with coral deposit material for resurfacing the airfield. Trucks dumping their contents at the field. Bulldozers and earth scrapers level the airfield surface. A TBF Avenger aircraft is the first to land on the unpaved airfield.