A NEW independent film about Britain’s first fighter pilot features stunning footage of North Ayrshire, the home of producer Daniel Arbon.
Titled Hawker, the project has been a labour of love for Arbon who built many of the sets himself, including the cockpits.
It will be released on the anniversary of the death of Major Lanoe Hawker (below) and portrays a pivotal few days in the First World War when airmen were transformed into fighter pilots for the first time. Until then, aircraft had largely only been used for reconnaissance or bombing missions.
The film uses a mix of replica aircraft, hand-built miniatures, life-size cockpits and CGI to tell the story and has been funded on a budget of £20,000, raised through grants from the Great War Aviation Society, sponsors and crowdfunding.
As well as writing and directing the film, Arbon plays the role of the commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Burke. Much of the flying footage was filmed using a replica Bristol Scout, owned and operated by David Bremner and Theo Willford, to recreate the aircraft flown by Bremner’s grandfather, Captain FDH Bremner, in the First World War.
For the filming, the replica aircraft was adapted with Hawker’s renowned side-mounted Lewis Gun, and the markings changed to match those employed by Hawker.
“This project has been my life for the past three years, and I am so thankful to everyone who has supported us, either financially or by spreading the word, and to all the cast and crew who worked so hard,” said Arbon.
The film has been supported by the Hawker family, and Hawker’s great-great-great-nephew, Lanoe Ertl, appears in the film as a young farm boy who lives near the aerodrome and loves aeroplanes.
The Hawker family said: “As some of Lanoe’s living relatives, we are absolutely delighted to see his legacy honoured with this new film. It will help new generations to understand the bravery and sacrifice of all World War One aviators at a time when the average life expectancy of a pilot on active service was often measured in months if not weeks.”
Hawker was just 25 when he was killed in combat on November 23, 1916, by Manfred von Richthofen, the infamous Red Baron who became Germany’s deadliest fighter pilot during World War I.
David Bremner said: “The Bristol Scout was the first aircraft manoeuvrable enough to be practical to aim the aircraft, rather than just the gun, and Hawker was the first to fully realise its potential for air warfare.”
Links to the film will be posted on Facebook at TheGreatWarAviationSociety and Hawkerfilm or Twitter/X under the name @GWAS1914_1918.
