Here is one of the rarest and most difficult movies to get your hands on. If you do a search for RAF gun camera films you won’t find much available public material at all.
Well finally, RAF gun camera films from World War II are now available for you to see. You can finally see how close some of the air-to-air engagements actually were, often within feet of each other.
These original films from the Battle of Britain were shot by RAF Spitfire and Hurricane aircraft during the actual close air combat with German Luftwaffe fighters and bombers during the Battle of Britain.
This restored DVD runs a total of nineteen minutes and the film is presented once in original speed and once in slow motion so you can easily see all the detail delivered on these rare and previously lost films.
The original film is titled “Records of Combats, RAF, August and September 1940.”
“This picture is made up from a selection of cine camera gun films taken in combat. They are not chosen because they are the best photographically or because they are necessarily examples of good shooting. They are simply a variety of good, bad and indifferent. Sometimes an assessment is shown or extracts from pilots’ reports and sometimes just the pictures without comment.
It is hoped that pilots may learn from the good and profit from the bad and that in any case you will find them interesting.”
Segment Listing
Friendly fire engagement between a Spitfire and Hurricanes. Extract from pilot’s reports is presented. Hurricanes had red dope centers and dark blue outer circles with no other markings.
Spitfire v He 111. Combat Film No. 52.
Hurricane v JU 88. Combat Film No. 61. Excellent close footage as Hurricane attacks from above and astern.
German Crew in Rubber Boat in Channel After Aircraft Was Shot Down.
Hurricane v JU 88. Combat Film No. 62.
Hurricane v Me 110. Combat Film No. 64. Engagement takes place low and over water. A burst of smoke can be seen as the inverted Hurricane closes in.
No.1 Squadron v Me 110. Combat Film No. 73. Extremely close attack of Me 110 low over water. Visible strikes seen with puffs of smoke from Me 110 right wing and engine. The battle takes place so close to water that whitecaps of waves are clearly visible. It would have been very hard for the Me 110 not to have crashed into the ocean in this segment. But somehow the Me 110, now on fire, manages to pull up from surface of ocean and attempt to climb.
Hurricane v Me 109. Combat Film No. 86. Hurricane is in close pursuit of the Me 109 when suddenly from above a canopy from another enemy aircraft falls right in front of the Hurricane and is caught on the film.
No.1 Squadron v He 111. Combat Film No. 89. Large formation of He 111’s is seen. As RAF aircraft makes its way through the formation. The He 111 aircraft appear to be in bombing formation. The film shows attacking aircraft on the tail of the last He 111.
Hurricane v Ju 87. Combat Film No. 90. Aircraft are diving in all directions in the background as this Ju 87 is targeted by the Hurricane. One aircraft passes ten feet in front of the Hurricane. The Ju 87 is engaged in close aerial combat and is clearly seen.
Hurricane v Me 109. Combat Film No. 97.
Spitfire v Me 110s. Combat Film No. 99. Remarkable sight of one Me 110 passing in a wing vertical turn between the Spitfire and the target Me 110.
The film ends with several segments of gun cine film joined at random. These include shots of RAF aircraft penetrating bomber formation, large groups of German bombers in formation below broken clouds, close pursuit on the tail of a Luftwaffe bomber, RAF footage from low flying fighter strafing over German homes, incoming attacks low over water on beach with large cloud of smoke seen, film shows RAF fighter diving towards water and we see a pilot under a parachute at close range, more attacks on bomber formations with bullet trails easily seen, and we see German Luftwaffe bomber formations holding positions as the RAF strikes from above with all guns firing on bombers.
Click Here to Watch a Few of the Random Segments from the End of This Movie
