BATTLE TAXI (1955)

Directed by Herbert Strock, with a screenplay by Malvin Wald, this black-and-white aviation film was distributed by United Artists. The production company was Ivan Tors Productions. Between footage of slow-moving helicopters, interspersed with some cliched human interaction on the ground, this is not an edge-of-your-seat combat film. Blurry, stock Korean War footage is inserted, signaling a low-budget, spliced-together effort. It is well-acted, and that saves it from being a total loss of eighty-two minutes. This and filming aircraft of the era. Historical aviation buffs will get their blood flowing with the high-speed flyovers of the North American F-86 Sabre Jets and F-51s, plus stock footage of F-80s, SA-16A Albatross, an RB-45 Tornado, and the Boeing SB-29 air-sea rescue aircraft. The Sikorsky H-19 Chickasaw helicopters are the lifeblood of the film. All of which gives authenticity to a film lacking any thrilling action. Perhaps determining which would sell more tickets, a fighter jet or a helicopter, the art director chose the former for the above poster. Once again, misleading a potential audience.

The film's most famous actor is Sterling Hayden, followed by the competent Arthur Franz and Marshall Thompson. The script allows for the occasional subtle humor between these three, and that helps. Hayden is the no-nonsense commander of an Air Rescue helicopter team during the Far East conflict. He is a thorn in the side of Franz, a hot-shot fighter pilot who has been thrust into piloting a cumbersome "air taxi" due to a shortage of rescue pilots. Ignoring direct orders, he takes it upon himself to delay a North Korean tank from pounding soldiers on his first mission. His co-pilot, Thompson, is not comfortable with the surprises that await him. Franz circles the tank twice as Thompson drops smoke bombs to hinder the enemy's visibility. Though the unauthorized maneuver does help the situation, distancing the soldiers from the tank, sparks fly when Hayden comes down hard on Franz for multiple reasons.

Angry with Hayden's by-the-book approach, Franz begs to be transferred to a fighter squadron where he can better use his skills. Instead, with everything he can muster, Hayden will drive home the importance of air rescue until he champions its cause. Not yet willing to accept his “whirlybird” limitations on a subsequent mission, Franz dangerously goes after a pilot stranded in enemy territory with low fuel reserves. The rescue is aborted after the downed pilot is gunned down while being hoisted up. He risks everything, confidently announcing they will find fuel along the way. A disabled military truck provides some extra fuel. But Franz is seriously wounded as they depart, leaving Thompson to fly back to base. Burning gasoline damages the engine, and his H-19 will take extra hours to fix.

Rather than pinning Franz to the wall verbally, Hayden volunteers him to speak to the fighter jockys if they ever need rescuing. The H-19 is at their service and the rescue team's top priority. Though awkward for him, it is a turning point in Franz's perspective.

There is a rather nifty sequence to divert a small band of North Korean troops away from the Americans. Piloting his "battle taxi," Hayden's co-pilot sets off a smoke flare that suggests the Korean's have struck the aircraft's engine. A bit of authentically faked maneuvering, he sets down the H-19 in an open field and opens the engine compartment. Aware that the enemy is running his direction, he closes the engine compartment once shots ring out. The helicopter quickly rises and disappears, moving the enemy further away for safety.

Note: There was stiff war movie competition during the same year as this B-movie. It was arguably Raoul Walsh's Battle Cry that gained the most attention. Other combat films of note were To Hell and Back, Blood Alley, Mister Roberts, and the British production of The Dam Busters. Battle Taxi has therefore become a film to chronicle Hayden's career. The film is a pretty good effort as an “also-ran.”