Sky Blazers

As far back as the beginning of WWII, aviation was an adventure. The marvelous bombers, fighters, and transports were flying off the drawing boards and beginning to roll out the factory door. The heroes who would fly them were learning their craft at airbases and fields around the country. They were trailblazers of the air or if you will Sky Blazers

There was a time, not very long before the one we were discussing, when aviation truly was an adventure; a time when each flight was a true pioneering effort. Stories of these early aviation heroes were presented over the Columbia Broadcasting System in 1939-1940 on the Phillips H. Lord production of Sky Blazers.

For Sky Blazers, Phillips H. Lord returned to the formula he had previously perfected for the popular police drama Gangbusters. On Sky Blazers, the 'Hero in Residence' was Col Roscoe Turner. Turner had invested his discharge bonus after WWI in a surplus airplane and became one of the early barnstormers. Eventually he became one of the most colorful figures in aviation.

Col Roscoe Turner left barnstorming to become a pioneer in airlines, establishing Nevada Airlines (for which the governor gave him the title of Colonel in the Nevada National Guard). He also got into show business, flying in Howard Hughes' Hell's Angels. Turner's greatest public success was in Air Racing.

Sky Blazers opened with a radio call from "Flight Control", trying to raise Col Turner, who must have been on another adventure in the air. After introducing himself to the radio audience, the host would also introduce the hero to be profiled in the episode. These were some of the great pioneers of military and civilian aviation, as well as the adventurers who helped to establish the Airmail Service.

For other aviation adventure series, see also: Air Adventures of Jimmy Allen, Airplanes and Pilots in Old Time Radio, Anne of the Airlines, Air Stories of the World War, Captain Midnight,Hop Harrigan, Howie Wing, A Saga of Aviation, Rare Aviation Old Time Radio Shows, Airmail Mystery, Sky King, Speed Gibson, Tailspin Tommy, Terry & the Pirates, Sky King, Sky Blazers, Charles Lindbergh Recordings, Amelia Earhart,   and Smilin' Jack.