Devotion - Korean War Aviation Film

[Dynoman]

Looks like an awesome film! I love the Corsair which is featured in the film. In fact out of the 12 flyable Corsairs in the world the film crew obtained 6 aircraft for filming. The movie debuts in theaters November 23rd!

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIvBBd8pU1s

 

[GTX]

Looking forward to this one.

 

[riggerrob]

Just saw DEVOTION and was impressed with all the live flying scenes and the attention to detail.
The ONLY historically inaccurate part was the parachutes worn by the heroes. They are recent production pilot emergency parachutes with full riser covers closed with Velcro. Since those riser covers open inwards, they are probably seats Softies made by Para-Phernalia in Arlington, Washington.
Korean War pattern seat-type PEPs have not been manufactured for many decades.

Rob Warner, FAA Master Parachute Rigger: back, seat and chest.

 

[riggerrob]

DEVOTION also contained three "woke" themes and did them better than most recent "woke" themes.

1. Latent racism within the US Navy and Marine Corps even after President Truman formally segregated the American armed forces. One USMC officer plays a comparatively tame racist who gets into one fist fight with aviators. His attitude improves when he sees USN pilots strafing Chinese soldiers to push them back from Chosin Reservoir.

2. Different pilot heard different instructions during training. The white pilot learned to follow instructions. OTOH the black pilot was repeatedly told that he would fail. The only way the black succeeded was to push against all the criticism.

3. The black pilot bucks the current stereotype of black, single mothers trying to raise black teenaged boys without positive male role models. Instead, the hero is a black pilot who is also a devoted husband and loving father. This is the sort of change that JFKJ was pushing for during the early 1960s.

 

[publiusr]

Baa Baa…the song is considered…never mind

What Is the Real Meaning Behind ‘Baa, Baa, Black Sheep’? | Sporcle Blog

Many preschoolers around the world are taught the popular Baa, Baa, Black Sheep nursery rhyme, but just what does it mean?

www.sporcle.com

I just think of Corsairs and keeping your tie tucked, Marine!

 

[Dynoman]

I agree in that the film handled the issue of racism well and thankfully, did not belabor the political or civil issues of the day, but instead focused on one man's experience as he surmounted the barriers in the Navy to become the first black naval aviator in the US. However, possibly more important, from a humanistic perspective, was how two men, from different races in such a racially charged era, could have forged such a friendship that they were both willing to risk their lives to save the other.

 

[Packard42]

Just saw DEVOTION and was impressed with all the live flying scenes and the attention to detail.
The ONLY historically inaccurate part was the parachutes worn by the heroes. They are recent production pilot emergency parachutes with full riser covers closed with Velcro. Since those riser covers open inwards, they are probably seats Softies made by Para-Phernalia in Arlington, Washington.
Korean War pattern seat-type PEPs have not been manufactured for many decades.

Rob Warner, FAA Master Parachute Rigger: back, seat and chest.

I just watched the movie last night. I didn't see any parachutes on the pilots. Also, seemed like he had plenty of time to jump out before crashing the plane. For that matter so did the other pilot with a good plane. What was I missing?

 

[riggerrob]

Just saw DEVOTION and was impressed with all the live flying scenes and the attention to detail.
The ONLY historically inaccurate part was the parachutes worn by the heroes. They are recent production pilot emergency parachutes with full riser covers closed with Velcro. Since those riser covers open inwards, they are probably seats Softies made by Para-Phernalia in Arlington, Washington.
Korean War pattern seat-type PEPs have not been manufactured for many decades.

Rob Warner, FAA Master Parachute Rigger: back, seat and chest.

I just watched the movie last night. I didn't see any parachutes on the pilots. Also, seemed like he had plenty of time to jump out before crashing the plane. For that matter so did the other pilot with a good plane. What was I missing?

Yes, the hero had plenty of time to bail-out before he crashed. The key variable was altitude. He wasted too much time trying to glide towards allied lines before deciding to belly-land. Most pilots are reluctant to bail-out of damaged airplanes. Back during the 1960s, USAF study concluded that far more pilots would have survived if they had merely made the decision to bail-out or eject a couple of seconds earlier.
As for the second pilot arriving at the scene of the accident by parachute .... great in theory ... but impractical unless he had extensive experience with deliberate parachute jumps.
Finally consider that Korean War vintage parachutes were essentially un-steerable, so you were doomed to land on whatever terrain you opened over. Exit timing is critical and even a few seconds hesitation will land you in the trees. Trees greatly increase the risk of injury during landing. In comparison, landing a parachute in fresh snow has the least risk of injuries.

Corsair pilots wore seat pack parachutes. Their torsos were wrapped in harnesses, but the parachute canopy was packed into the seat cushion. Modern stunt pilots wore Softie Warbird seat packs during filming. If you know what to look for, you can see the green Cordura (nylon fabric) riser covers under their shoulder belts. Those riser covers protect the harness from sunlight damage and reduce the risk of snagging when bailing out during an emergency.
Many Navy pilots preferred to not strap on their parachute until they were high enough to bail-out. They figured that lacking a parachute would make for a quicker swim out if they had to ditch in the water immediately after take-off.

 

[riggerrob]

Just saw DEVOTION and was impressed with all the live flying scenes and the attention to detail.
The ONLY historically inaccurate part was the parachutes worn by the heroes. They are recent production pilot emergency parachutes with full riser covers closed with Velcro. Since those riser covers open inwards, they are probably seats Softies made by Para-Phernalia in Arlington, Washington.
Korean War pattern seat-type PEPs have not been manufactured for many decades.

Rob Warner, FAA Master Parachute Rigger: back, seat and chest.

I just watched the movie last night. I didn't see any parachutes on the pilots. Also, seemed like he had plenty of time to jump out before crashing the plane. For that matter so did the other pilot with a good plane. What was I missing?

Yes, the hero had plenty of time to bail-out before he crashed. The key variable was altitude. He wasted too much time trying to glide towards allied lines before deciding to belly-land. Most pilots are reluctant to bail-out of damaged airplanes. Back during the 1960s, USAF study concluded that far more pilots would have survived if they had merely made the decision to bail-out or eject a couple of seconds earlier.
As for the second pilot arriving at the scene of the accident by parachute .... great in theory ... but impractical unless he had extensive experience with deliberate parachute jumps.
Finally consider that Korean War vintage parachutes were essentially un-steerable, so you were doomed to land on whatever terrain you opened over. Exit timing is critical and even a few seconds hesitation will land you in the trees. Trees greatly increase the risk of injury during landing. In comparison, landing a parachute in fresh snow has the least risk of injuries.

Corsair pilots wore seat pack parachutes. Their torsos were wrapped in harnesses, but the parachute canopy was packed into the seat cushion. Modern stunt pilots wore Softie Warbird seat packs during filming. If you know what to look for, you can see the green Cordura (nylon fabric) riser covers under their shoulder belts. Those riser covers protect the harness from sunlight damage and reduce the risk of snagging when bailing out during an emergency.
Many Navy pilots preferred to not strap on their parachute until they were high enough to bail-out. They figured that lacking a parachute would make for a quicker swim out if they had to ditch in the water immediately after take-off.

 

[Packard42]

Just saw DEVOTION and was impressed with all the live flying scenes and the attention to detail.
The ONLY historically inaccurate part was the parachutes worn by the heroes. They are recent production pilot emergency parachutes with full riser covers closed with Velcro. Since those riser covers open inwards, they are probably seats Softies made by Para-Phernalia in Arlington, Washington.
Korean War pattern seat-type PEPs have not been manufactured for many decades.

Rob Warner, FAA Master Parachute Rigger: back, seat and chest.

I just watched the movie last night. I didn't see any parachutes on the pilots. Also, seemed like he had plenty of time to jump out before crashing the plane. For that matter so did the other pilot with a good plane. What was I missing?

Yes, the hero had plenty of time to bail-out before he crashed. The key variable was altitude. He wasted too much time trying to glide towards allied lines before deciding to belly-land. Most pilots are reluctant to bail-out of damaged airplanes. Back during the 1960s, USAF study concluded that far more pilots would have survived if they had merely made the decision to bail-out or eject a couple of seconds earlier.
As for the second pilot arriving at the scene of the accident by parachute .... great in theory ... but impractical unless he had extensive experience with deliberate parachute jumps.
Finally consider that Korean War vintage parachutes were essentially un-steerable, so you were doomed to land on whatever terrain you opened over. Exit timing is critical and even a few seconds hesitation will land you in the trees. Trees greatly increase the risk of injury during landing. In comparison, landing a parachute in fresh snow has the least risk of injuries.

Corsair pilots wore seat pack parachutes. Their torsos were wrapped in harnesses, but the parachute canopy was packed into the seat cushion. Modern stunt pilots wore Softie Warbird seat packs during filming. If you know what to look for, you can see the green Cordura (nylon fabric) riser covers under their shoulder belts. Those riser covers protect the harness from sunlight damage and reduce the risk of snagging when bailing out during an emergency.
Many Navy pilots preferred to not strap on their parachute until they were high enough to bail-out. They figured that lacking a parachute would make for a quicker swim out if they had to ditch in the water immediately after take-off.

Thank you! That was very informative. I was expecting to see the parachute hanging on the pilot's back. I did not know the real situation.

 

[riggerrob]

Just saw DEVOTION and was impressed with all the live flying scenes and the attention to detail.
The ONLY historically inaccurate part was the parachutes worn by the heroes. They are recent production pilot emergency parachutes with full riser covers closed with Velcro. Since those riser covers open inwards, they are probably seats Softies made by Para-Phernalia in Arlington, Washington.
Korean War pattern seat-type PEPs have not been manufactured for many decades.

Rob Warner, FAA Master Parachute Rigger: back, seat and chest.

I just watched the movie last night. I didn't see any parachutes on the pilots. Also, seemed like he had plenty of time to jump out before crashing the plane. For that matter so did the other pilot with a good plane. What was I missing?

Yes, the hero had plenty of time to bail-out before he crashed. The key variable was altitude. He wasted too much time trying to glide towards allied lines before deciding to belly-land. Most pilots are reluctant to bail-out of damaged airplanes. Back during the 1960s, USAF study concluded that far more pilots would have survived if they had merely made the decision to bail-out or eject a couple of seconds earlier.
As for the second pilot arriving at the scene of the accident by parachute .... great in theory ... but impractical unless he had extensive experience with deliberate parachute jumps.
Finally consider that Korean War vintage parachutes were essentially un-steerable, so you were doomed to land on whatever terrain you opened over. Exit timing is critical and even a few seconds hesitation will land you in the trees. Trees greatly increase the risk of injury during landing. In comparison, landing a parachute in fresh snow has the least risk of injuries.

Corsair pilots wore seat pack parachutes. Their torsos were wrapped in harnesses, but the parachute canopy was packed into the seat cushion. Modern stunt pilots wore Softie Warbird seat packs during filming. If you know what to look for, you can see the green Cordura (nylon fabric) riser covers under their shoulder belts. Those riser covers protect the harness from sunlight damage and reduce the risk of snagging when bailing out during an emergency.
Many Navy pilots preferred to not strap on their parachute until they were high enough to bail-out. They figured that lacking a parachute would make for a quicker swim out if they had to ditch in the water immediately after take-off.

Thank you! That was very informative. I was expecting to see the parachute hanging on the pilot's back. I did not know the real situation.

If you want to study pilot emergency parachutes in more detail, the FAA certifies PEPs in 4 different categories (back, seat, chest and lap) , based upon where they are hung on the aircrew man.

You are already familiar with the most popular type: BACK worn by 80 percent of military aircrew.

SEAT type PEPs were worn by pilots of single-seater fighters and dive bombers. Seats evolved from open-cockpit biplanes which had plenty of excess headroom, but no spare space between the pilot's chest and instrument panel.

CHEST were mainly worn by gunners, navigators, etc. who worked in cramped quarters. They wore their parachute harnesses full-time, but only clipped on CHEST packs as they neared the emergency exit.

Finally, LAP type PEPs were developed for a handful of cramped gun turrets that were only briefly popular during the late 1940s. Similar to CHEST packs except that the parachute canopy was semi-permanently attached to the harness and the parachute container lay in the gunner's LAP. LAPs fell out of production during WW2 and were only recently (post 2000) revived by civilian parachute riggers Jerry Baumchen and Terry Urban, more as a novelty. Though LAPs are a good fit in some civilian kitplanes with side-mounted control sticks.

During my parachute rigging career, I have packed about 4,000 BACKS, 400 SEATS, less than 100 CHESTS and only 2 LAPS. I have also manufactured a pair of LAP prototypes.