Retired airline captain Barry Schiff has logged more than 26,000 hours in 275 types of aircraft.
Heat-seeking missiles streak toward the supersonic transport. The captain shuts down the engines (to eliminate the heat), opens a cockpit window (during supersonic flight), and fires a flare into the stratosphere (to distract the missiles). Such absurdity happens only in Hollywood and was featured in The Concorde — Airport '79.
Pilots are dismayed at how callously aviation is sometimes portrayed on the silver screen. In early movies, an engine failure in a single-engine airplane caused an unrecoverable spin or dive. Subsequent moviemakers perpetuated this myth because it had dramatic impact. This concept became so widely accepted that producers are reluctant to portray the truth; a glide would appear unrealistic.
No wonder so many people fear light airplanes. Their perception of flying is based on the myths and misconceptions they see in movies and accept as gospel.
Films often are flawed because the bottom line can be a producer's highest priority. Authenticity might be desired but only to the extent that it does not adversely impact the budget or the film's dramatic purpose. Some producers are cynical about accuracy. One claims, "The typical moviegoer shops at K-Mart and buys burgers at McDonald's. How many of them really care about technical perfection? They prefer excitement to authenticity.
"People go to theaters to escape reality. Movies are candy for the mind; their purpose is to entertain. Do you think the audience is turned off by a six-shooter with 50 shots? We could have the hero reload, but that slows the action.
How many people in the audience can spot an aviation error? Only pilots, and there aren't enough of them to matter. If a scene is entertaining and serves a dramatic purpose, it stays."
In Goldfinger, James Bond and Pussy Galore wrestle for a pistol in the cabin of a high-flying bizjet. A shot goes off, and the result is an explosive decompression and an uncontrollable dive, another example of giving the audience what it wants. Besides, isn't a bullet hole supposed to decompress a cabin and cause loss of control? Another myth perpetuated.
The moviemaker takes in the audience with verisimilitude, creating the impression of reality by adhering closely to other details. This can be so effective that it disguises a plot element that otherwise would seem absurd.
Authenticity frequently is not possible. For the movie Tora, Tora, Tora, T-6s and BT-13s were modified to look like Zeroes and Kates because real Japanese fighters were unavailable. Few aviation movies are without flaw. Two of the best were The Spirit of St. Louis and The High and the Mighty.
When a producer wants authenticity, he often hires a technical advisor, an expert to help keep errors to a minimum. Doctors, for example, are often on the set during an operating room scene. Aviation experts are not as common because filmmakers occasionally are self-appointed experts. If the director is a private pilot, he might believe he knows enough to accurately portray airline or military activity. Actors usually enjoy working with experts because this helps them to develop their characterizations and perform more convincingly. How else can an actor learn the behavioral mood and movements of a pilot he needs to portray?
But an expert cannot guarantee perfection. When filming a drama involving an airliner in jeopardy, producers usually cannot obtain cooperation from an airline. This is why aircraft mockups and fictitious airline names often are used. Unfortunately, an accurate mockup might not be available, necessitating creative and noticeable improvisation. Problems arise when producers economize by using stock footage to show jetliners. Unless the film editor is careful, a passenger winds up taking off in a Boeing and landing in an Airbus.
Moviemakers are imaginative. Background aircraft often are plywood cutouts made realistic by electric motors turning balsa propellers. Using model aircraft can result in unrealistic footage because model movements might not occur about axes that pass through the center of gravity. Poorly made models, unrealistic clouds, and scale effect also contribute to an unconvincing film.
Crashes are expensive to produce, which is why many are hidden from the camera. Occasionally, a crash landing is authentic, such as when Paul Mantz landed gear-up in a B-17 for Twelve O'clock High.
Aviation also is misrepresented on television news because often reporters know not of what they speak. To them a stall is an engine failure, and accidents occur because pilots don't file flight plans. An example of absurd reporting occurred after a Mooney and a Piper collided over Southern California. Both aircraft were being flown on instruments in visual conditions by pilots wearing view-limiting devices. An instructor was in the right seat of each aircraft. Both aircraft landed safely, and no one was injured. That evening, a reporter appeared on the news standing in front of the Mooney. "This accident," he said, "occurred because the pilots were flying blind and could not see outside the aircraft." The camera then zoomed in on the heat shields that obscured the Mooney's windows (obviously positioned after the flight). This tale was repeated by other news services.
No wonder the public has such wild misconceptions about flying. That's show biz. Over and out.
Visit the author's Web site ( www.barryschiff.com).
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