The Wings of Warfare

Along with archival film, the program includes new footage of vintage planes in flight, plus new experiments -- including two veteran bombardiers' replication of a war-time run. The program also includes film of craftsmen re-creating the Wright brothers' early planes, working from the brothers' original calculations and notes.

Actor Stacy Keach, who starred with his twin brother, James, in 1973's "Wilbur and Orville: The First to Fly," is the documentary's narrator.

As a youth, Keach said via e-mail, he built and flew model airplanes, "mesmerized by the mystery of how a mechanical object could fly."

Describing "Warplane," Keach said, "I am astounded at the speed by which technology in the air has progressed. Each new generation of warplane has created new chapters in the book of human endeavor."

The Pentagon's Hallion said fascination with warplanes "is why people like going

to air shows. They're excited about high-performance new machines, but they're also interested in seeing what people experienced in both world wars."

That excitement mirrors the public's intrigue during the earliest days of military planes, he said. "In 1914, when they saw the sputtering and frail craft that were like ultralights, people just weren't convinced that this little creation can be as valuable as a whole cavalry on a whole corps of horses."

WARPLANE

Wednesdays9 p.m., PBS

A Few Famous Firsts

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1909: The U.S. Army acquires its first airplane, a Wright Flyer.

1915-1917: The British pioneer aerial reconnaissance by photographing German trench positions and feeding information to ground troops. The British also develop successful warplanes including the Sopwith Camel (below).

1939: The first successful flight of an airplane with a jet engine, the Heinkel He 178, takes place.