While Gary Cooper was not anything like Billy Mitchell in the film that really does not matter. What does matter is that in his time he was fighting for an Air Force that would be able to defend America. He was right that at the time the armed services use of air power and the safety of the pilots was criminal, the number of Air Forces bases named for the people that died during this time can attest to that. He was also correct that the armed forces would depend on air power, a fact the armed forces ignored until nearly 1939 when Hitler proved what a modern air force could do. If it were not for the fact that private companies like Boeing were developing planes before the military were asking for them would could have been fighting the first year of WWII in biplanes.
While many of Billy Mitchell's claims may have seemed absurd at the time the showed quite an insight of how air power would develop over the next 50 years.
That being said do catch this film. The cast is top notch and their performances leave you feeling sorry for Cooper and hating Rod Stieger! This is one of my top 20 films not only for the cast and crew but for the subject matter.
While many of Billy Mitchell's claims may have seemed absurd at the time the showed quite an insight of how air power would develop over the next 50 years.
That being said do catch this film. The cast is top notch and their performances leave you feeling sorry for Cooper and hating Rod Stieger! This is one of my top 20 films not only for the cast and crew but for the subject matter.