U.S. AIR FORCE ACROJET FLIGHT DEMONSTRATION TEAM PRECURSOR TO THUNDERBIRDS WILLIAMS FIELD XD50684

Join this channel to get access to perks: Want to learn more about Periscope Film and get access to exclusive swag? Join us on Patreon. Visit Visit our website This sound film was shot by filmmaker Norman Schley sometime in the late 1940s / early 1950s (probably 1950). It shows activities at Williams Air Force Base in Maricopa County, Arizona, east of Chandler. The footage is “raw“ and basically unedited, but was apparently shot by Schley in anticipation of making a longer film about the Acrojets -- a U.S. Air Force aerobatics / acrobatic team that preceded the Thunderbirds. Officially known as the USAF Fighter School Acrojets demonstration team, the group flew four Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star planes and later - the training version aka Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star. The Acrojets were the first official demonstration team of USAF, the first demonstration team to take to the skies after World War II, and the first which flew jets. The first team included only flight instructors: Maj. Howard Jensen as the (also called the F-80) leader (11:24), Lt. Michael Smolen (11:53) as left wing, Capt. Jones E. Bolt (12:10) as right wing, Maj. Walter K. “Lefty“ Selenger in the slot and Capt. Robert Tomlinson as the spare pilot. In 1951, four of the “Acrojets“ team pilots were reassigned to Korean War units and only Michael Smolen stayed at the Fighter School to recruit new “Acrojets“ pilots. During the production of the 1951 film “Air Cadet“, the “Acrojets“ flew many of the flying sequences and Lt. Smolen was the technical advisor for the film. The Acrojets were disbanded in 1953, the same year the Thunderbirds came into existence. The Thunderbirds show still uses a maneuver pioneered by the “Acrojets“: the now well known “bomb-burst“ maneuver followed by a crossing maneuver. Though the history of the Acrojets was short, their impact was immense. Their aerial acrobatics and precision flying showed what jets could do and served as a recruitment tool to get people to join the Air Force. Incidentally, later in life Lt. Col. Michael Smolen was involved in a diplomatic incident while serving in Caracas, Venezuela. He was taken hostage by rebels and briefly held before being exchanged. We encourage viewers to add comments and, especially, to provide additional information about our videos by adding a comment! See something interesting? Tell people what it is and what they can see by writing something for example: “01:00:12:00 -- President Roosevelt is seen meeting with Winston Churchill at the Quebec Conference.“ This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit