Combat America

This 1945 documentary, produced by the First Motion Picture Unit at the behest of Gen. Henry H. “Hap” Arnold, follows the B-17 Flying Fortress crews of the 351st Bombardment Group from training to combat in WWII’s European Theater. Filmed in color—a rarity for the time—and narrated by Clark Gable, it begins at Peterson Field, Colorado, where gunners drill on turrets and bomb sights amid sagebrush and snow-capped peaks. The film tracks their deployment to RAF Polebrook, England, capturing life in cramped barracks—card games, letter-writing—and the tension of mission prep. Combat footage soars: B-17s pierce flak-filled skies over Germany, gunners swivel in ball turrets, and bombs rain on factories or rail yards below. Rest scenes show weary crews debriefing or unwinding with beer and swing music. Aimed at orienting new gunners, it blends raw aerial action with human grit, saluting the 351st’s role in pummeling the Reich under Arnold’s command.