Red Tails

Red Tails Movie Poster Country United States Czech Republic Directed by Anthony Hemingway Release Date 2012 Language English German Italian Studio Lucasfilm Partnership Pictures Distributor 20th Century Fox Main Cast Character Actor Colonel A.J. Bullard Terrence Howard Major Emanuelle Stance Cuba Gooding Jr Marty 'Easy' Julian Nate Parker Joe 'Lightning' Little David Oyelowo Sofia Daniela Ruah Colonel William Mortamus Bryan Cranston Lieutenant General Luntz Gerald McRaney

Red Tails is the 2012 war movie directed by Anthony Hemingway (The Wire, Battlestar Galactica) starring Nate Parker, David Oyelowo, Terrence Howard and Cuba Gooding Jr, with Bryan Cranston and Gerald McRaney. Executive Producer George Lucas had long been an aviation buff (as demonstrated in Star Wars) and had wanted to make a film about the Tuskegee Airmen for years, but was unable to secure funding due to difficulty of marketing films with predominantly black casts to white and international audiences. Lucas selected director Hemingway after seeing his work on The Wire, and along with casting director Alexa L. Fogel, also of The Wire, selected many veterans from that show to fill out the cast. For Terrence Howard and Cuba Gooding Jr, this was their second turns as Tuskegee Airmen, having starred in Hart's War and HBO's The Tuskegee Airmen, respectively.

The following weapons were used in the film Red Tails:

Aircraft Armament

Browning M2 Aircraft (Flexible)

The Browning M2 Aircraft heavy machine gun appears in the film as the primary armament of US Army Air Force bombers.

Browning M2 Aircraft, Flexible - .50 BMG

The top turret of a B-17.

The tail turret of the B-17F and early Gs.

A waist gunner fires his M2. Note the K-13 lead-computing gunsight.

The chin turret and top turret firing.

A gunner firing his M2 from the radio room. This is odd as all the CGI B-17s in the film omit the radio room mount.

The Sperry ball turret with its twin fifties.

The waist gunners with their M2s. Note the plexiglass window and the staggered positions, which were features added to the B-17G to improved crew comfort.

Note the omission of the radio room mount.

The "Cheyenne" tail guns of later B-17G models. The CGI model carries an anachronistic USAAF insignia, however, as the insignia shown was phased out in September of 1943.

Browning M2 Aircraft (Fixed)

American P-40 and P-51 fighters are armed with fixed Browning M2 Aircraft machine guns.

Browning M2 Aircraft heavy machine gun - .50 BMG

The fifties on the P-40 firing.

The "Red Tails" with their new P-51Ds.

A "Red Tail" splashes a German fighter.

MG131 Machine Gun

MG131 machine guns appear as the primary armament of German Messerschmitt Bf-109G fighters. Because it was much larger than the MG17, the MG131 required bulges in the engine cowling, which can be seen below.

MG131 - 13x64mm B

The bulges can be seen forward of the cockpit.

The German fighters all appear to belong to Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" (note the stylized "U" emblem near the cockpit.)

MG 151/20 cannon

The Bf-109Gs in the film are also armed with MG151/20 cannons, seen in the underwing gondolas.

The MG 151 aircraft automatic cannon - 15x96mm or 20x82mm

The MG 151's are in the underwing gondolas.

The underwing gondolas, which could be easily detached, imposed weight and drag penalties, which were an acceptable trade-off if intercepting bombers. It is unlikely that they'd be used against fighters though.

MK 108 cannon

The German Me-262 jets are armed with four MK 108 cannons in the nose. Bf-109s were also armed with a single MK 108 Motorkanone firing through the propeller hub. Tests verified that only four hits from an MK 108 were necessary to take down a bomber. With an Me-262, that's a single salvo.

MK 108 cannon - 30mm

The gun ports for the MK 108 cannons in the nose of this doomed Me-262.

The Motorkanone of an Bf-109 blazing.

An Me-262 firing its' MK 108 cannons

Small Arms

Colt M1911A1

The pilots of the 332nd Fighter Group carry M1911A1 pistols as part of their flight gear.

M1911A1 - .45 ACP

"Lightning" (David Oyelowo) with his holstered M1911A1.

Luger P08

The German officer (Richard Conti) at the prison camp draws what may be a Luger P08 when he discovers the escape.

Luger P08 - 9x19mm

M1 Garand

The M1 Garand is also one of the weapons carried by American troops storming a beach. German troops are also seen armed with them.

M1 Garand - .30-06

Luftwaffe airmen prepare their airbase against air attack.

A German soldier runs with an M1 Garand as an airfield is attacked. Note the fake "German" halftrack; as in Saving Private Ryan this is a postwar Czech clone, identifiable by the lack of stowage boxes above the tracks.

Since the airman on the right appears to be trying to work a non-existing bolt action, it's possible that these men are CGI.

Karabiner 98k

German forces are seen using the Karabiner 98k to fire at the American planes.

Karabiner 98k - German manufacture 1937 date - 7.92x57mm

A German soldier aims his Karabiner 98k at a pair of attacking P-40s

"Pretty Boy" (Lars van Riesen) with a K98k after the attack.

MP40

German troops are armed with MP40s

MP40 submachine gun - 9x19mm

German troops rush to capture a downed pilot.

A camp guard with his MP40.

Browning M1919A4

A Browning M1919A4 is seen when the American troops land on the beach. A German Ju-87 dive bomber also appears to have one in lieu of an MG15 machine gun.

Browning M1919A4 - .30-06 Springfield

An M1919 on a landing craft.

An M1919 in the rear defensive position of the Ju-87.

Browning Automatic Rifle

The Browning Automatic Rifle is one of the weapons carried by American troops storming a beach.

Browning Automatic Rifle - .30-06

MG 34

MG 34 machine guns are seen in twin mounts at the German airbase.

MG 34 - 7.92x57mm Mauser

The twin MG 34 in a control tower.

Another twin mounting on a German ship.

Leuchtpistole

An American airman signals from a control tower with a Leuchtpistole.

Leuchtpistole - 26.65mm

Other

2 cm Flak 38

Germans troops are seen firing 2 cm Flak 38 anti-aircraft guns.

German 2 cm Flak 38 in single mounting - 20x138mm B

These are fitted with mesh brass catchers.

This shot appears to be flipped.

8.8cm FlaK 36

An 8.8cm heavy anti-aircraft/anti tank gun can be seen as American P-40s attack an air base. This appears to have a two-piece FlaK 36 barrel, though it is unclear which model of gun cradle it is using.

German FlaK 36 (note two-piece barrel with locking collar) - 88x571mm R

PLDvK vzor 53

The German cruiser, which is referred to as a destroyer in the film, defends itself with PLDvK vzor 53 AA guns. The PLDvK vzor 53 is a land-based Czechoslovakian 30mm AA gun.

The ship itself. The armament and shape of the hull and superstructure would suggest that it's a cruiser, though it is an entirely fictional design.

Trivia

CZ-75B

Ne-Yo, who plays "Smokey," fires a CZ-75B during a boot camp featurette.

CZ 75B - .40 S&W

Prop AA guns

Prop AA guns are part of the German airfield defenses.

Faux B-17F

Most of the CGI B-17s in the film were of the G-model, including some with the Bendix chin turret removed and plated over to portray F-models.