Product: Midway (Collector's Edition) (1976)
Rating: 5.0
Movie Versus Reality
The movie fairly accurately portrays the crucial battle of Midway in the early days of WWII, and the effect on operations of the "fog of war." The Japanese started the operation with inadequate intelligence, and the failure of their seaplanes to refuel at the French Frigate Shoals was devastating for their intelligence (for want of a nail, the shoe was lost, etc). The movie reflected the emergence of Japan as a world naval power, yet demonstrated without commenting on them several major deficiencies of Japanese Naval airpower. The first example was the failure orf the Japanese Combat Air Patrol to adequately defend their own carriers, instead rushing off in pursuit of the American aircraft, and leaving their ships naked to attack by follow-on American dive bombers. In the movie we see Admiral Chuichi Nagumo turn to his Air Operations officer, Commander Genda Minoru, and ask what has happened to their Combat Air Patrol. Genda explains they have taken off in hot pursuit. This was a common occurrence among Japanese pilots. The event also reflects the poor quality of Japanese aircraft radio communications, often showing them using hand signals. They viewed air combat as an individual sport and not a team effort. When Admiral Nagumo decides to change of armament on his aircraft the movie clearly documents them striking the aircraft below to the hangar deck to change armament and for refueling. American aircraft, on the other hand performed these tasks on the flight deck, a safer procedure and less time consuming operation. Additionally, American carriers had many more safety features such as self-sealing aviation gas storage tanks, and the use of carbon dioxide to flush fuel lines after refueling aircraft. Japanese aircraft carriers lacked these features, and the movie shows them uncontrollably burning. Finally, American sailors were (and still are) better trained in damage control; Japanese sailors received little training. The American carriers were also constructed with other features which allowed for destroyers and cruisers to come along side and assist in fire fighting, again, features lacking in the Japanese carriers. In addition to what the actors said and did, the movie demonstrated a lot in the background that made the movie an excellent tribute to not just to the fliers involved, on both side, but especially to the Naval designers of the American carriers. For more complete information on Japanese Naval Air Power I recommend "Sunburst: The Rise of Japanese Naval Air Power, 1909-1941," available from Amazon.