Wings was a box-office hit when it achieved general release in 1929 and went on to win the award for Best Production at the first Academy Awards. Air Force generals Hap Arnold and Hoyt Vandenberg were among the military officers involved with the production: Arnold as a technical consultant and Vandenberg as one of the pilots.

Made with the cooperation of the United States' then- Department of War (a relationship that continues to this day), it used front-line military aircraft of the day such as the Thomas-Morse MB-3 and Boeing PW-9, flown by military pilots. In 1926, the first 'proper' aviation film was made Wings is a story of two pilots who sign up to fly and fight in the First World War.

In the early 1920s, Hollywood studios made dozens of now-obscure 'aerial Westerns' with leads such as Tom Mix and Hoot Gibson, where the role of the horse was taken by aircraft, or used aircraft as nothing more than vehicles for stunts to excite audiences. The years between World War I and World War II saw extensive use of aircraft, a new technology, in film, a new medium. Henry Arnold, 'who picked up 'a few extra bucks' for his services' and 'became so excited about movies that he almost quit the Army to become an actor.' Humphrey–directed two-reeler, The Military Air-Scout, shot after an Aero Club of America flying meet at Long Island, New York. The first aviation film was the 1911 William J.

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