- Cone of Silence (1960 film)
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Cone of Silence 
Theatrical posterDirected by Charles Frend Produced by Aubrey Baring Written by Robert Westerby
David Beaty (novel)Starring Michael Craig
Peter Cushing
Bernard LeeMusic by Gerard Schürmann Cinematography Arthur Grant Editing by Max Benedict Studio Aubrey Baring Productions
Bryanston FilmsDistributed by Universal--International Films Release date(s) 10 May 1960 Running time 88 min. Language English Cone of Silence (1960) is a film about the investigation into a series of crashes involving the fictional "Atlas Aviation Phoenix" jetliner. In the United States, the film was released under the title Trouble in the Sky. Cone of Silence is loosely based on the history of the de Havilland Comet.[1]
Contents
Plot
Captain George Gort (Bernard Lee) is a pilot for British Empire Airways, flying their route London - Rome - Cairo - Ranjibad - Calcutta - Singapore. He has been found to be at fault after crashing his Phoenix 1 jetliner on takeoff from Ranjibad airport, killing his co-pilot. He is accused of rotating too early, increasing drag to such an extent that the aircraft cannot achieve flying speed.
Gort is reprimanded but is allowed to return to flying the Phoenix after a check flight under Captain Hugh Dallas (Michael Craig). Meanwhile, Gort's daughter Charlotte (Elizabeth Seal) refuses to believe he is at fault. Gort's flying skills are again called into question when an approach to Calcutta is apparently made dangerously low, causing the aircraft to hit a hedge just before the runway threshold. It is later discovered that there was no hedge at the threshold of the Calcutta runway, and that the piece of hedge wrapped round the undercarriage leg had actually come from Ranjibad, where the aircraft had been taken off by Captain Clive Judd (Peter Cushing) - this shows that Gort is not the only pilot to have problems taking off.
Gort is later involved in a second crash, this time killing all on board. The crash is remarkably similar to the first - both involve a fully loaded aircraft on a hot night, taking off under Captain Gort from the same runway at Ranjibad airport. Dallas eventually discovers that the aircraft's designer had deliberately withheld information on potential take-off difficulties in hot conditions. A third crash is avoided by seconds when a crew about to take off are contacted by Air Traffic Control, and told to add eight knots to all unstick speed and keep the nosewheel on the ground until just before unstick speed is reached.
Cast
- Michael Craig as Captain Hugh Dallas
- Peter Cushing as Captain Clive Judd
- Bernard Lee as Captain George Gort
- Elizabeth Seal as Charlotte Gort
- George Sanders as Sir Arnold Hobbes
- André Morell as Captain Edward Manningham
- Gordon Jackson as Captain Bateson
- Charles Tingwell as Captain Braddock
- Noel Willman as Nigel Pickering
- Delphi Lawrence as Joyce Mitchell
- Marne Maitland as Mr. Robinson
- William Abney as First Officer
- Jack Hedley as First Officer
Production
Representation of the "Phoenix" in the film
The "Phoenix" is represented by the Avro Ashton WB493, then in use as a testbed by the engine manufacturer Bristol Siddeley (now part of Rolls-Royce plc). This aircraft included two Olympus turbojet engines in addition to the four Nenes.
References
- Notes
- ^ "Cone of Silence (1960)." Britmovie.com. Retrieved: 21 November 2011.
- Bibliography
External links
- Cone of Silence at the Internet Movie Database
- Trouble in the Sky|AKA Cone of Silence
- Cone of Silence at AllRovi
The films of Charles Frend 1940s The Big Blockade • The Foreman Went to France • San Demetrio London • Johnny Frenchman • The Loves of Joanna Godden • Scott of the Antarctic • A Run for Your Money1950s 1960s Cone of Silence • Girl on Approval • Torpedo Bay • The Sky BikeCategories:- 1960 films
- British films
- Aviation films
- Black-and-white films
- Films directed by Charles Frend
- 1960s British film stubs
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