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Stranded aircraft delays production on Nicolas Cage war movie

Production on NICOLAS CAGE’s new disaster movie USS INDIANAPOLIS: MEN OF COURAGE had to be temporarily shut down on Monday (29Jun15) when a seaplane from World War II became stranded off the Gulf Coast.
Crewmembers had been using the 70-year-old PBY-6A aircraft to shoot scenes for the real-life war story in the Gulf of Mexico, but it landed awkwardly, just off the coast of Orange Beach in Alabama, and began taking on water due to unknown “mechanical problems”.
No one was injured in the incident and producers set about having the water pumped out of the vintage seaplane before towing it closer to the shore.
However, the plane’s front landing gear became stuck in the ocean bed, leaving filmmakers no choice but to adapt to the situation.
The aircraft itself appeared to have avoided any major structural damage and filming resumed on Wednesday (01Jul15), when director Mario Van Peebles decided to use the incident to shoot more realistic scenes, reports AL.com.
The war film details the sinking of the USS Indianapolis in shark-infested waters in the Philippine Sea in 1945. The ship was subsequently targeted by a Japanese submarine and it was four days before U.S. Navy personnel spotted the desperate survivors clinging to life in the water. Only 317 of the 1,196 crewmen survived the ordeal, making it the greatest single loss of life at sea in U.S. Navy history.
Cage portrays the ship’s captain, Charles Butler McVay III, alongside co-stars Tom Sizemore and Thomas Jane.
The film is due for release next May (15) to coincide with America’s Memorial Day weekend.

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