Original subtitles

Hey uh. How about me next, Polaski?

Oh sure. We got time before the Lieutenant gets back.

Hey Polaski. Don't take too much off the sides.

-Sure. -Yeah.

Last guy cut mine took too much off the top too.

Hey, Kirby. Don't blame the barber now. Ha ha.

Hey Sarge. Did the Lieutenant tell you anything about the mission?

Naw. Just that it's something special.

Hey. A guy was telling me about a good deal he had once.

He was escorting a bunch of them USO chicks around.

Hu ha. Ha ha, hee.

Whoopee, ha ha.

Who you gotta know to get a job like that Sarge?

USO chicks.

(laughs)

Men. This is Sergeant Keeley.

Sergeant Saunders.

That it?

Caje, Littlejohn, Kirby, Polaski.

What's the mission Sergeant?

Escorting me and my pigeons.

(laughter)

Hey. Hey, we wanted some chicks and we got pigeons.

(more laughter)

Pigeon Service?

Well, Lieutenant, look, they don't... What is this? Some kind of joke?

No joke Kirby.

You and the pigeons are gonna be infiltrating deep behind enemy lines.

You'll be working in an area that's crawling with krauts.

Sergeant.

Saunders.

(kiss noises)

Coo, Coo, Coo.

I can't see nothing but little beady eyes, staring back at me.

Aired Nov 17, 1964

They got better quarters than we got, ain't they?

-Yeah. -Cooo.

Pigeon Service, U.S. Army Signal Corp.

It's a pretty big name for a bunch of little birds, isn't it.

(kiss noises)

Hey. I wonder if they'd like some K-rations. Do you think so?

Yeah.

-Come on. Let's go feed em'. -Okay.

Hey. Polly wants a cracker.

Coo, coo, coo, coo. Coo, coo, coo,coo.

Cookie, cookie.

Who opened that door?

We was just gonna feed 'em.

Keep your hands off them. Now get outta the way.

Why?

Come on down.

Come on.

Here you go.

Come on.

Come on. There's nothing to be afraid of now.

Come on.

(cooing)

Come on Daffy. Bring them all down.

Heh heh.

Yeah. Come on.

Now you see. There's nothing to be afraid of at all, is there?

That's enough.

Gimme a kiss. (smack smack) Come on.

Come on.

Come on. We'll go inside.

Come on.

You had quite a little scare there, didn't you.

Come on. We'll go inside now.

Come on. Now don't be afraid Daffy

You heard.

Nobody's gonna bother you anymore.

Come on. Get inside.

Come on down, Frenchie.

Come on.

Alright, White Wing. Come on down.

Come on.

Come on down, Herman. Come on Herman.

He talks to those creatures like they were people.

That's a boy.

Well, I guess that's all of them.

Now get this straight.

You men are escorting me and the pigeons. That's all.

Keep your hands off of them.

Alright Keeley. You've made your point.

Let's get on with the briefing.

Yes sir.

We stay here Mitchell.

Ready to pull out.

Stay away from those pigeons, huh.

Alright. Here right across the river about three, four hundred yards in. The krauts are building something.

Could be a V-2 rocket site, uh.

Underground ammo depot...anything.

They're thick woods. AA guns all around.

Our recon planes can't get in low enough to take pictures.

These pigeons are gonna try and do the job.

No wise-crack Sergeant?

How's the pictures work, Lieutenant.

This is an idea we borrowed from the krauts.

I'll give you the details later.

The first time we've ever tried it. He's been training his birds for a months.

That's right.

Don't carry any radio equipment. It would make it too easy for the krauts to spot your position.

You want to send messages, one of my...

Birds will bring 'em back here to the loft.

Any questions?

Lieutenant, there's one thing I want to get straight right now.

Anything having to do with those birds, I give the orders.

And no arguments.

Alright Keeley, uh...

Anything having to do with the birds...

You give the orders.

The brass wants this experiment to work, so uh..

Take it easy, will ya.

Right, Lieutenant.

Alright, everybody out. All your gear.

Careful with those cages.

What'd you think we was gonna do? Stomp on them..

-I said careful. -Alright. Take 'em.

I'll help you with those cages.

Nevermind.

Littlejohn.

Stash the truck in those trees over there.

Cigarette?

Nope. I don't smoke.

Bothers the pigeons.

If you're gonna smoke, stand off to windward.

Where you from Keeley?

Regular army.

Wherever I'm stationed, that's where I'm from.

Been in long?

Yup.

The pigeons are really something, huh.

Yeah.

People could take a lesson from them.

Yup.

How young do they have to be before you start training them?

Look, Saunders.

You don't have to make conversation.

I got the truck stashed away Sergeant.

What about these pigeons?

Want a hand?

Well, I'll take White Wing and Taffy here.

You take these. And watch.

Sure.

Hey uh, If...

them birds has been trained for war would uh...

With guns going off and everything.

How come they got so upset when we were just laughing and talking around their coop?

Well, they don' like noise or strangers in the loft because...

That's where their home nests are.

Not unlike some human beings.

They like order, and quiet.

Decency in the place they live in.

Okay. Let's go.

Caje?

Scout the ridge up there.

Alright. Take five.

Come on boy.

Get 'em on. There.

Heh heh heh.

Hey, what's that? The camera, Sergeant?

Yup.

When we get to the target...

White Wing will fly over it, take the pictures, then fly home.

Well. How's it work? On a timing device.

No. No timing devices.

There's a little ball on the side of the camera here.

And when the bird's in flight...

The rush of the air through the little ball releases a lever at regular intervals and

it clicks the shutter.

That's really something.

Take it easy now. You're gonna be okay.

Get in there.

All clear.

Alright. Saddle up.

Another half a mile we'll be in kraut territory.. Don't bunch up and keep quiet.

Let's go.

(German fires first salvo)

We're on.

I'm over here.

Polaski.

Okay.

They're gonna ring us in Sergeant.

Hey, fellas.

Hey fellas. Can you help me.

Hey fellas. Do I need to run?

Hey fellas.

This is all I need.

Can you come down here fellas.

Guys, help to get me outta here.

The woods west.

My pigeons.

Hey fellas. Hey fellas.

Think. Come on. Come on Kirby, help.

(takes a deep breath)

Gotta get down there.

Kirby. Lob in a smoke bomb. I'll try and work my way down.

Cover him.

Kirby. Lob in another smoke bomb.

Last one I got Sarge.

Caje.

Try to work your way in around them. Get above them and try to take them out with some grenades.

You got a hell of a pigeon jockey Sarge. He sure got guts.

What about Polaski.

Is he dead?

He's dying.

Plaski's alive and you left him out there?

He's done for.

Your boy's dead.

Speedy's dead.

Huckle's leg is broken.

You're worried about those pigeons. Polaski's laying out there.

I told you Polaski's done for. He's probably dead already.

He was alive when you left him.

Nothing would have helped him.

Blam.

It's all clear Sarge.

Caje got 'em.

Alright. Get ready.

Do you mind if I bury him.

Well, I don't see nothing looks like a big cob billy job.

You're not supposed to.

It's probably right over there in those woods.

Alright Keeley.

Come on boy.

Time to do your stuff.

Well, how's a bird supposed to know to... take pictures on the other side of those trees.

Don't bother me.

There you are boy.

Now you do the job. I'm counting on you White Wing. Come on.

Don't know which way to go. Just flying around in circles, that's all.

They circle to get their bearings.

Especially over a strange area.

That's instinctive.

I've trained them to expand and prolong their circling's though.

So we can get more pictures over a bigger area.

He's heading home.

The kraut spotted him.

Ich dachte, der kreisende Vogel war misstrauisch.

-Is that the only camera? -Yeah.

Alright, you got the pictures. Let's get the film before the krauts do.

We've gone far enough.

We'll cut across right here.

How do you know this is the place?

I've been training for 16 years to calculate a thing like this. That's how.

Alright, kep your voices down.

Come on. Lead the way.

White Wing's still alive. I saw him move.

(German)

Let's take 'em without firing a shot.

Caje. You're on me.

(German)

(Pow, pow, pow, pow)

Why did you fire. We could've taken 'em.

Now kraut headquarters knows we're here.

I had to, try and save Boifren.

Let's get outta here and fast. Back across the river.

Caje, the point.

I didn't expect him to open up.

Looks pretty bad.

Nah. It's only a flesh wound. I'll be okay.

We can't stop now. Just try to keep some pressure on it. Come on.

Hey.

-How you doing? -Okay.

You'll get some rest as soon as we cross the river.

You're gonna be alright. Good as new.

Fix you up just as soon as we get home.

Let's go.

(Germans begin shooting)

Hold it.

They were waiting for us.

That kraut sergeant got through on the radio.

-Caje? -Yeah? -Come with me.

The rest of you stay put.

They're dug in pretty good.

We'll never cross here.

This is the only place.

That river's half a mile wide upstream and down.

And anyplace else is too deep to cross.

Well, they'll be closing on us in the dark.

Sarge. Can't we try 'em one at a time.

It wouldn't work. They could match our cover, find us, still pick us off.

What about a few grenades.

We couldn't get within 50 yards.

Yeah. What we need's some artillery.

Yeah. That would help.

Wait a minute.

The pigeons.

Oh no you don't.

No pigeons are flying outta here now.

The krauts couldn't miss.

We'll get outta here some other way.

What other way?

Now look Saunders. You're not gonna kill off any of my pigeons.

Nobody's trying to kill them off.

We just want to send one of them back with the film and a note calling for artillery fire.

Tuffney wouldn't get a hundred yards in the air and they'd pick him off and you know it.

-Yes they would if they were shooting at something else. -Like what?

I'll draw their fire. Go off on a flank.

Now here. You put this camera on him.

I'll draw the coordinates for the artillery.

Now do it!

Okay, Chiko.

Why isn't that camera on the bird?

Because he's not going.

Hanley laid it out to you straight. I make the decisions when it comes to the pigeons.

And I'm not killing one of these birds for nothing.

Now you listen to me Keeley. I have 5 men here.

That's a lot stacked up against a pigeon's life.

Pigeon's life? Well, let me tell you something.

These birds mean just as much to me as you or...

any of these men in your squad.

They're decent. They're loyal.

And that's a lot more than I can say for a lot of people.

I don't know what happened to you Keeley. Or why?

'Cause you're not gonna take it out on these men. Their lives are at stake.

Now strap it on. That's an order!

I'm gonna go off on their left flank.

You get over there. Out of line of fire.

Those krauts open up on me....

You let 'em go.

I got it.

Keeley.

Hello, Lieutenant.

Anything yet, Maxwell?

Nothing sir.

You have plenty of time to find a target.

I wouldn't worry sir.

If they get near the target, those pigeon's will bring back the film.

I'm not worried about the pigeons flying over the enemy lines.

My men have got to walk through them.

Maybe so.

But there's one thing your squad doesn't have to worry about, Lieutenant...

(Grauck)

What is it? A hawk?

Yup. (pow)

(Bird squaks in alarm)

He knows there's a pigeon off down here.

(German)

Good luck, old boy.

Did he get him.

I don't know. I couldn't tell.

I couldn't tell. Did the krauts get 'im.

Last I saw of him he was going over the treetops.

How fast can he go?

Well, if the krauts didn't wing him, up to 70 miles an hour.

It'll be dark in an hour.

There's a bird coming in.

There. Over that big tree, Lieutenant.

Is he one of yours?

I don't know yet. But he's headed this way.

He's ours.

Hawk!

(grauck)

Come on. We gotta find him.

I'm out of ammo.

I'm on my last mag Sarge.

Disperse your shots.

There you go.

(artillery shell rips the air above)

(Boom)

(Artillery shells coming in steady)

Boy!

Come on. Let's go.

-Tuffy's Okay. -Yeah.

He'll be flying again in a month.

You give him a soft berth, will ya.

Will do.

You'll be alright.

How's Littlejohn?

He's gonna be alright.

Well?