Corsair Legends: The Jolly Rogers | Fighting 17: The Jolly Rogers | Full Documentary
This is the story of Navy squadron VF-17, the amazing Jolly Rogers. Flying their beloved "Hogs," the F4U-1 Corsair, they cleared the skies of 154 Japanese planes in 76 days of combat over the Solomon Islands. While never losing a bomber to enemy attack, Fighting-17 destroyed the heart of Japanese fighter command over Bougainville and Rabaul paving the way for the Allied advance.
Director: Tom Jenz
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Men like these are why EVERY AMERICAN NEEDS TO STAND AS OUR ANTHEM PLAYS. We can stand, as ONE Nation. Because of what they suffered. And the friends they lost. Honor them. Stand the hell up! Without their efforts and losses, YOU WOULD NOT EXIST.
But VF17 BECAME VF84 AND THEY EXIST!
Amen!
I love these old story’s and history. There is a saying I believe whole heartedly in. THOSE WHO DO NOT STUDY HISTORY ARE DOOMED TO REPEAT IT
Blackburn’s book, The Jolly Rogers is worth the read.Good news when it was truly needed and start of the turn around in S. Pacific.
great book
Though I did not first learn of Doug Gutenkunst until 15 years ago, my parents were long time friends with his younger brother Phil. One day Dad says- Did you know that "Guttie" (Phil) had an older brother that was a Navy pilot that perished in action during the war? About the only other thing Dad said about the subject was that- I don't think that Phil ever truly got over that. Very sad.
There is so much important, even critical, information about actions our military, all branches, performed in the war, that we wouldn't know about, except for posts like this. Thank you, very much.
What a story! This is how a documentary should be done. I'm wondering when the interviews were done?
Yes and why had we not seen it Before ?!
Looks like late 70's early 80's
Gen.Mac,auther,-had headquarters in Sydney,at the "Grace-Building" in York st,-my Grandfather was an Elevator driver,there & the U.S. flyers used to pass through there,while in Sydney,--we lived at Clovelly near Bondi beach,--and my Grandad used to invite the flyers home for a "home-cooked meal"-and a B.B.Q.-& a swim !!--he brewed his own beer,-so plenty of fun & games!!-the flyers had a "permanent-flat"-(apartment)-in Mcleay st,-(it's still there)-near the docks,-Sydney,-and,as the gentleman said-they were certainly "entertained"-& drank the Pubs dry !!
Excellent documentary. The best I've seen regarding the exploits of a particular squadron.
VMF-214 "Black Sheep", VMF-215 "Fighting Corsairs" and VF-17 "Jolly Rogers" were all based next to each other on Guadalcanal . My step-grandad, Capt. Donald N. Aldrich, USMCR, was with VMF-215, shot down 7 Japanese in '43 and 13 in '44.
He certainly was a legend on his own! Second top-scorer of the VMF-215. Have you read "The Fighting Corsairs"? Amazing book about VMF-215, really worth a dive in.
@@Corktip14 Yes, I've read it. In an E-mail sent by Roger Conant wrote about 20001 he said "To hear Tommy Blackburn tell the story, VF-17 won the war!" 😀
@@stevewilke8524that must have been awesome having those great folks as acquaintances! That being said, I thought VMF-214 won the war single-handedly! 😀
Hey there! My dad was your dad’s skipper. Major James L. Neefus, founding CO of VMF 215.
@@captainsalty9022 I don't recall offhand if he was in 215 at ghd same time as Maj. James Neefus, most of the recollections I've heard/read about were regarding Major Robert "Bob" Owens.
What a fantastic story! Although these brave men tell of the highlights and hellraising they did, we must also remember their suffering and hardships. They went through hardships and loss that we cannot imagine. We must never forget their bravery and sacrifice for our country and we must honor their contribution to the war in the Pacific and our victory. These brave men are mostly gone now and we owe them a tremendous debt. Never forget!
C rations issued in Vietnam were usually marked 1944. Yes Virginia the canned eggs were green. The gi’s called them “green eggs and ham”.
That was awesome thank you. These men are heroes in every sense of the word!
The final statement about wartime buddies never forgetting each other is 100% true. My best friend from Vietnam . . . died of a stroke . . . but I hope to see him when this life is over.
Absolutly fantastic Documentary. Heartfelt and concise. The men retelling their stories are awsome
Glad you enjoyed it!
Thoroughly enjoyed!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Fantastic documentary! Really well done. I felt like I got to really know these guys. They were quite colorful and amazing pilots.
Excellent documentary!
Many thanks!
Bless each and every one of them.
Jolly Rogers later were the squadron of USS Nimitz. The movie star of the twentieth century Navy.
My mother-in-Law, Helen Minor Black was a "Rosie The Riveter" during the war years at the Goodyear Aircraft factory in Akron Ohio. She was a riveter on the tail sections of the F4U's.
Very cool! Thanks for sharing
Schweet,Was very honored to know one of these pilots and his wife, Frederick Jagger known as Andy Gump and his wife Betty they were friends of the family,I built Andy a model of a corsair diving on a zero which he had for several years before his passing and just before Betty went to be with him she gave that and a large print picture of a corsair and zero fighting each other that had been signed by members of the Jolly Rogers Squadron based at Oceana Air Base VA Beach,Va back to me,such wonderful people and still miss them both to this day.🏴☠🏴☠🏴☠🏴☠
Great documentary! Know Mr. Hills hometown very well! Spent a lot of time on front street.
Glad you enjoyed it
I knew some of these guys, by meeting them at one of their reunions back in the early 1990's.
Excellent ....thank you.
Our pleasure!
Thanks for sharing
Salute.
..... "In February of 1943 an American offensive recaptured the first of those islands" ..... side note, that "offensive" began in August 1942.
I often think, when watching something like this what a huge advantage self-sealing fuel tanks gave Allied aircraft. In addition to their bravery and the robust quality of their equipment, that innovation must have saved hundreds of flyer's lives.
Excellent
Loved the story but really disappointed at seeing a lot of the same old combat footage as in other airwar documentaries. Gotta be more on the shelf somewhere.
5:29 😁😁
I don't think many people caught it. 😂😂😂
Awe called it “Green eggs and ham”. C rations issued in Vietnam were usually marked 1944. Yes Virginia the canned eggs were green. Do this day I do not throw cans out of my pantry that are out of date. And I’m 75 years old.
True American heroes
When I was a flight sim fanatic, me and my trusty Zero annihilated tons of Corsairs. Get them to follow you down in a steep dive, then pull out of the dive and watch the much heavier Corsair fly into the ground. I wonder how many suffered that fate during the war.
Seriously….
@@kevindunham7158 Zero weighed 3700 pounds empty. Corsair weighed 9200 pounds empty.
Hey, thats not fair... LOL..
Did I miss something? No mention of Ira Kepford!?
I had built the REVELL 1/32 scale Corsair flown by Ira Kepford. That is where I learned of "The Jolly Rogers". 🇺🇸👍
@@stepanbandera5206 if a model f4u has jolly roger decal, it's number 29.
Yeah nothing mentioned about Ike Kepford.
One of those guys was my lawyer.
The best men ever !!!
The Corsair was flying before Pearl Harbor So the US had a plane which was more than a match for most German and Japanese aircraft. The Navy wanted something lighter and simpler for their carriers so they went with the Hellfire.
I believe you meant to say Hellcat (Grumman F6F).
@@garydaniels5495 You are absolutely correct. Mea Culpa
The F6F was started in 1938, but after 1942, it was significantly redesigned to counter the Jap Zeros. It didn't enter military service of any model type until 1943.
You mean the F8F Bearcat as a replacement for the F6F Hellcat? Because the F6F was bigger and heavier than the F4F Wildcat. The Corsairs only issue in the Navy wasn't the weight, but the long nose. At first, it caused a lot of landing issues on Carriers. But that got sorted out, technic wise later. Never have heard of the Hellfire.
The Greatest Generation!🙂
The Navy was hesitant to assign the Corsair to Carriers because of the visibility issues. What really forced the Navy to do so was the Kamikaze’s appearance.
Where was that exactly?
@@JeffreyWilliams-dr7qe the Kamikaze’s officially began operations October 25, 1944 at the battle of Leyte Gulf.
@ronlee2776 Look it up again please It was in the Visayans someplace. See the Divine Wind. Thanks
The Navy had gone with the Hellcat for the carriers, Corsairs for the land based ops, partly for tactical reasons (the Marines were screaming for a Wildcat replacement), and partly because the Corsair needed time to mature for carrier ops (which was accomplished by late summer 1943, largely a result of work by VF-17) and by then the logistics folks didn't want to maintain two separate supply chains to the carriers for two different fighters. And that is documented, including by VF-17 CO Tommy Blackburn in his book JOLLY ROGERS.
@@JeffreyWilliams-dr7qe earlier attacks were extemporaneous, spur-of-the moment affairs, not officially ordered or sanctioned. Organized tokko missions were first flown by aircraft based a Malabacat (Clark) and attacked escort carriers off Samar on 10/25/44, and is considered part of the Leyte action.
They look like harmless, old guys.....They are not.....They are badass, hard men.....Who did a tough job and did it well.
My Dad was on the Bunker Hill (CV 17). They don’t make men like this anymore.
“THE Greatest Generation!” I wonder, if this country were ever in Australia’s position, who would come to her defense?
This should give people an idea how brave and proficient the pilots really were The Corsairs were very difficult to land on a carrier. After many carrier accidents the Navy moved them to land airfields. The cowlings were too long to see the flight deck. The navy shipped them to the Brits. The Brits figured it out. Fly alongside the carrier so they could see the flight deck before attempting to land. After that, the Navy brought them back to the carriers.
The F 4 U was the best airplane in WW two.
God Bless Them, but they weren’t as good as VBF-83 Corsair’s which flew from the Essex during the Okinawa campaign.
..maybe bit all heros in my mind❤
And lady's sorry .😊
This isn't new.
Perhaps not, seeing that it happened more than 80yrs ago. Bits of it were taken and cobbled together to give a bit of a new perspective. Having seen some of it before, I could watch it again as these individuals were the fighter jocks imagined.
Amen !