After the attack on Pearl Harbor, a rookie Pan Am navigator must fly around the world in a Clipper seaplane, a valuable war resource carrying secret cargo and a lady spy. Based on a true story.

PEARL HARBOR meets MEMPHIS BELLE. 

SYNOPSIS:

The Japanese battle group is one thousand miles north of Oahu. Admiral Yamamoto gets his final orders to attack Pearl Harbor, which will be a secret for the next five days.

One thousand miles south, Pan Am Clipper crew members in Honolulu prepare for their flight to New Zealand. JACK DAVIS is an experienced Clipper Captain who becomes a mentor to DENNIS STONE, his rookie navigator. Dennis gambles, which Jack hates, so they have an adversarial relationship. Before the flight, Dennis gets into a fight with his girlfriend, NANCY, because he sells bootleg cigarettes, while Jack has a loving conversation with his wife, CAROL.

The Pacific Clipper was a long-range, four engine, heavy-payload seaplane. Stewards served gourmet meals on fine china and sofas converted into beds. The only class was first class. An hour out of Auckland, the radio officer hears of the Pearl Harbor attack. After landing, the Captain is ordered to bring the plane back to New York, flying westward.

Dennis screws up the takeoff and gets an ear full from Jack. The passengers depart at Gladstone Australia and then the plane heads west. That night in Darwin, a drunk punches Dennis.

Near Java, a dogfight commences with Dutch fighters and Jap Zeroes. Jack scolds Dennis while taxiing through the hazardous mined harbor. In a bar, Dennis tries to pick up a nurse and gets punched by a British officer, giving him a black eye, which he ties to hide from Jack.

On the next leg, across the Indian Ocean to Ceylon, a Japanese submarine shells the plane. BILL, the co-pilot, is killed so Dennis becomes the co-pilot.

An engine goes out on the next takeoff so the crew members spend Christmas with Dutch naval officers. Here, halfway around the world, Dennis admits that he misses Nancy, a new revelation.

After flying over the Red Sea, they follow the Nile south to Khartoum, where, SUZANNE, a spy, MARY, her sister, and HAROLD, Mary’s husband, board.

In a flashback, Suzanne narrates her espionage career. She stole an Enigma codebook while naked and now must get it to New York.

The crew members don’t know that French Resistance fighters have stolen uranium ore which will be loaded onto their plane after they land in the Congo, along with a secret map.

The Congo River is filled with mud islands which makes the landing dangerous. Their takeoff and climb out through the walled gorge becomes life-threatening after a malfunction. They narrowly miss hitting the towering walls, a frightening experience for all on board.

They fly to Natal, Brazil, where Nazi agents with a snarling doberman wait for Suzanne. HANK, one of the mechanics, helps Suzanne hide in the outer wing then spreads oil by the hatch, masking her scent. The agents leave but fumigators board to spray the cabin. They steal the map and plant a bomb in the lower bathroom.

On their takeoff from Trinidad, a German submarine fires a torpedo. The plane lifts off as it passes under them with inches to spare. The trip north is uneventful, until Dennis descends into a warm front and icing almost downs the plane. After the ice melts, Dennis finds the bomb and throws it out. It explodes mid-air.

The Clipper arrives in New York harbor. Suzanne agrees to have dinner with Hank and she gives the codebook to the military. Jack calls his wife then approves an upgrade to Captain for Dennis, who tells Nancy that he’ll stop gambling. His proposal is the last scene.

CLIPPER