Page 7 - Aerotech News and Review, Oct 19 2018

High Desert Hangar Stories
The Stunt Pilot Ace
Privates, starring the same duo.
As commander of the school, Scott was the subject of a great deal of of- ficial and not-so-official attention and services from the studio entourage. He realized all these things they were doing for him were so he would co- operate with them in the production process, but he admitted he was not
used to such luxury.
So now we shift the focus of this
story to a bit of Hollywood lore about a stunt that was performed in the mov- ie that has really never been duplicat- ed again. No wonder, as it was done during a time when stunts were more “seat-of-the–pants” bravery than the carefully calculated ones performed today. The famous stunt pilot Paul Mantz was the only member of the studio that Scott knew, and he asked Scott if he would let him fly through all four hangars at the field for a seg- ment in the movie. The four hangars, that are still at the Chino Airport today, were lined up end to end. Today, many stunt pilots routinely fly through single hangers for commercials and movies, but four consecutive hangars is a bit hairy, even by today’s standards!
So the request was forwarded to of- ficial Army Air Corps-types and Mantz was quickly turned down, reason be- ing that civilians were not allowed to perform such stunts on military prop- erty due to insurance problems. Facing long faces after telling the crew and Mantz that they had been denied, Scott
by Bob Alvis
special to Aerotech News
Gen. Robert L. Scott was a man who needed no introduction in America for decades.
As one of the Flying Tiger pilots in China during World War II, the West Point graduate became a hero who in- spired a nation at war with his daring and skills, and became an Ace in an outfit that captured America’s attention in weekly headlines. His life was filled with so many twists and turns it almost reads like fiction, but the reality is every bit of it was true right up to, as he called it, being “fired” from the Air Force at the rank of brigadier general!
So how does the general tie in to Southern California and our High Des- ert region for this article?
Well, in 1940 he received his first command as commander of the Cal-Ae- ro Academy at Ontario — later Chino — and became friends with Academy owner C.C. Moseley, making many trips up to our own Polaris Flight Acad- emy here in Lancaster before America entered World War II. Starting off with just 42 cadets, within a year he was overseeing a school with more than 600 cadets as America prepared itself for its eventual role in the war.
The military brass and the govern- ment back in those days knew the stress
Courtesy photograph
Courtesy photograph Gen. Robert L. Scott with the Flying Tigers in China during World War II.
October 19, 2018
Aerotech News and Review
7
Gen. Robert L. Scott
and difficulty of what was coming. They understood that Hollywood, and outfits like the U.S.O., could be valu- able tools in keeping the morale of a nation lifted up. They would “keep the home fires burning,” as they say, giv- ing the G.I.’s a bit of diversion from the rigors of war.
In 1941 Hollywood came calling. Universal Pictures contacted C.C. Moseley about using Cal-Aero Field for a new movie starring Abbott and Costello, called Keep ‘Em Flying, af- ter the great success of the movie Buck
said, “But hell, Paul, I’ll fly through those hangars for you!” Mantz replied with a simple, “You will?” And the rest is history.
So the stunt was on and the buzz around the field was about an amazing stunt that was going to be performed by the base commander! What a great way to inspire the troops — but then again, what if it ended with disaster??!
Scott went and measured things up, calculating how far the prop of the bi-plane reached up and how far the landing gear hung down. He figured out that the “oleo leg” gear dropped
14 inches, so he had a field mechanic tie the wheels up to get the clearance he needed. The day came and the only way to practice the stunt was to just DOthestuntandsohedid—andthe one major problem he encountered was the one he never saw coming. Flying between the hangars, the sun would hit the tarmac and he would get a bump upwards. That uneasy feeling was re- peated three times in just a few sec- onds, as the stunt played out. Passing out of the last hangar, a very stressed but relieved base commander wrote his
See SCOTT, Page 8
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