Spielberg's fascination with World War II and the aircraft of that era was stimulated by his father's stories of his experience as a radio operator on North American B-25 Mitchell bombers in the China-Burma Theater.
Spielbergove sympatie ku 2. svetovej vojne a letectvu v ňom vyvolal jeho otec, ktorý mu rozprával jeho historky zo skúsenosti, ktoré zažil ako radioman lietadla B-25 Mitchell v China-Burma Theater.