In 1939, at the outbreak of World War II, there were three airfields
in Northern Ireland. Inside two years, there were 26.
Acclaimed auteur John T Davis turns from Americana to the second passion
of his life - wartime aircraft - in this untold tale of World War
II in the north of Ireland.
Tailwind is the story of our role in the air war, when tens of thousands
of pilots and aircrew from every Allied nation
came to prepare themselves – and their aircraft – for
frontline action; and to participate in the Battle of the Atlantic.
For many, Ulster would be their final resting place...killed not
in action, but in accidents. As many air crew lost their lives in
crashes as in combat. Tailwind tells the story through a range of
people now in their 80s and 90s who were involved - aircrew, WAAF’s
and civilians - from Ireland, America, Poland and New
Zealand.
Davis tracked down pilots in the United States who had been based
in Ireland and Ulster ‘war brides’ - girls who had married
American airmen and gone back to the States with them. The film pays
tribute to the pilots of the Polish Air Force based in County Down
and to the American crews of the legendary
B17’s, the ‘Flying Fortress’, prepared in County
Antrim for frontline action.
It also reminds viewers of the crucial Donegal Corridor, a flight
zone agreed with the neutral Irish government allowing
aircraft a ‘shortcut’ to the Atlantic. John T Davis dedicates
the film to his late parents, George and Kay. George has one
of those the war brought from England to Ireland - where he fell in
love with an Ulster girl.
John says: “It’s been a real privilege to work with people of my parents’ generation who lived through the war. To me so many of them are real heroes, and so many of them risked so much. “
Michael Beattie, Tailwind producer, adds: “Sadly five of our
interviewees have passed away since we filmed with them. But the consolation
for me is that their memories are now on record and won’t be
lost. It meant a lot to each of them to have this last
opportunity to share their recollections, and play a part in telling
an important Northern Ireland story that was in danger of being forgotten
altogether.”
Tailwind is a Michael Beattie Media Production for BBC Northern Ireland.