The Falcon Fighters

In the prewar days leading up to the Second Sino-Japanese War of 1937, head flight instructor Lt. Katō Tateo of the Imperial Japanese Army-Air Corps trains new volunteers from the Army's Infantry to become Japan's next generation of fighter pilots at the Tokorozawa Flying School. Flying Kawasaki Ko-4 biplanes, Lt. Katō will train both friend and future foe alike. But as war in China breaks out, Katō now in command of the 5th Rentai will take his untested men flying antiquated planes into aerial combat against the Chinese Air Force who is now headed by Lt. Cho who Katō both earlier befriended and personally trained himself. While Katō's squadron ultimately achieves air superiority over the skies of Manchuria, it comes at a high price in men to which each loss carries a heavy burden that he alone must carry. As the war widens into the Second World War, Captain Katō must battle an ever advancing array of deadlier new enemies flying ever more modern fighter planes.

Country:

Japan

Genre:

Drama,

War

Duration:

100 minutes

Year:

1969

Director:

Mitsuo Murayama

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Company:

Daiei Film

Cast:
Makoto Satō

Lt. Takeo Kato

Kōjirō Hongō

2nd Lt. Ando

Ken Utsui

Jun Fujimaki

Cho Eishun

Shiho Fujimura

Kato's Wife

Crew:
Koichi Takahashi

Art Direction

Masaichi Nagata

Executive Producer

Katsuya Susaki

Screenplay

Yukio Okumura

Sound Recordist

Shoichi Uehara

Lighting Technician