Here then are my favourite movies involving or about aeroplanes. You may like to make your own list and send it to me, then again you might not. Here we go:

10: In tenth place we have 'MEMPHIS BELLE', a fictional retelling of a wartime documentary of the same name. Mathew Modine and Billy Zane star in a slightly plodding film that gets a lot better as soon as the B-17's wheels leave the ground. A B-17 belonging to the French was actually destroyed whilst shooting, the blazing wreck appearing as footage in the finished film. Thumbs up to: Five B-17s and a B-25 Mitchell Camera ship all in the air over East Anglia for the first time since 1945. Thumbs down to: Dubious special effects and a slow pace.

9: 'MURPHY'S WAR' makes it into ninth place which is good for a film that isn't about flying. The Grumman Duck makes this a 'must see' for aviation buffs and Peter O'Toole's attempt to teach himself to fly it is a white knuckle never-to-be-forgotten ride. Thumbs up to: Grumman Duck in Authentic Venezuelan locations. Thumbs down to: The same Duck is incinerated during the making of the film (it was 1969 and Ducks weren't that important)

8: Eighth place belongs to 'ROCKETEER', a great adventure film of the late eighties that oddly did very poor business at the box office. Story is all about a top secret Jet-pack which Nazi Germany is attempting to steal so they can invade the USA with troops of Jet-pack adorned shock troops... Lots of flying sequences and a fight atop the Graf Zeppelin all make this very worthwhile. Full of aviation in-jokes and 30's splendour this is just good hokum. Thumbs up to: Opening sequence with a GeeBee racer. Thumbs down to: Uncharismatic leading star.

7: 'CATCH-22' belongs in the seventh spot, Joseph Heller's wonderful book brought to the big screen by Mike Nichols and a galaxy of stars. The airbase and runway can still be found in Guaymas, Northern Mexico, the airstrip now dug up to prevent drug drop-offs. Lots of B-25's and Orson Welles who arrives in his own white-walled tyre version. Thumbs up to: Too numerous to mention. Thumbs down to: Several B-25's destroyed in its making.

6: Still one of the most 'fun' flying movies, 'THOSE MAGNIFICENT MEN IN THEIR FLYING MACHINES' features many 'fabricated for the movie' flying machines that are still dotted around the country in various flying museums and in the case of the Shuttleworth collection's Bristol Boxkite, still flying. Good clean honest fun in the mould of 'The Italian Job', this is a film you couldn't really make for the more cynical turn-of-the-century minds. Thumbs up to: Terry Thomas muttering 'Blast!' as the wings of his aircraft get ripped off. Thumbs down to: Dodgy blue screen work and some misplaced slapstick.

5: It all gets contentious from here on in. 'THE BLUE MAX' is many people's number one. Shot entirely on location in the underpopulated West coast of Ireland, there are aerial sequences in this film that could only be done now with prodigious computer effects. George Peppard plays Bruno Stachel in a story about a young German pilot's attempts to win the medal of the film's name. Lots of flying sequences and a few Tiger Moths dressed up as BE2c's (go figure) Thumbs up to: Flying through the arches of a viaduct in a Fokker DR1 replica. Thumbs down to: George Peppard. It should have been McQueen.

4: Hurricanes, Jack Hawkins, Michael Dennison and more stiff upper lips than you can throw a spit at. Could there be a better combination? 'ANGELS ONE FIVE' is a film I can watch again and again. Sharp-eyed filmgoers will notice some 'flopped' shots to enable the Hurricanes to fly in the right direction (the squadron codes are back-to-front!) but there is little dull or boring in this movie about front line antics during the Battle of Britain. Thumbs up to: The collapsing roof sequence in the bunker. Thumbs down to: Hokey special effects (it was made in 1952) that are quite charming now.

3: Okay, okay, I know I'm just sentimental old git but Spielberg's 'ALWAYS' has so many good elements in it that I can't resist putting this in at number three. Richard Dreyfuss, John Goodman, Audrey Hepburn and Holly Hunter are superb and the fire-bombing sequences are second to none. Plenty of Catalinas too and don't miss the opening shots of a Cat scooping on a lake, Outstanding. Thumbs up to: Sequence where Dreyfuss dead-sticks a fire bomber. Thumbs down to: Can't think of anything.

2: Second is 'THE GREAT WALDO PEPPER' , Hollywood's homage to the barnstorming era starring Robert Redford. I just loved the sheer exuberance of the flying sequences and the very romantic atmosphere that this seat-of-the-pants flying tends to generate. Who hasn't dreamt of being a flier in the golden age of Aviation, when the FAA and the CAA weren't even thought of and you could roam the Midwest offering five minute flights for a dollar in a Curtis Jenny? Joy; sheer joy.

And at number one:

1: I saw this film when it first came out, fell in love with it and aside from all its faults (of which it has many) It's my number one flying movie. 'THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN'. It begins with a review of the Spanish CASA built Heinkel 111's and goes on to a victory roll by a spitfire which misfires loudly as it goes a bit 'light' over the top. We pan down to a pair of weary soldiers evacuating France. One says to the other: 'Who does he think he's kidding?' The film is a salute not just to 'the few' who saved the country from almost certain invasion but also to probably the last time that Britain had a strong national identity and purpose. Made by Cubby Brocolli and Harry Salzman of 'Bond' fame, they spent millions on building ersatz Hurricanes and Spitfires only to blow them up and a lot of Duxford and North Weald besides. A galaxy of stars including Michael Caine, Ralph Richardson, Lawrence Oliver, Christopher Plummer, Trevor Howard, Kenneth More and Edward Fox to name a few. Thumbs up to: Most things - Richardson as the British Ambassador in Switzerland and Olivier as Dowding realising he can't give France the support it needs. Thumbs down to: Halliwells Film Guide giving this only one star and describe it as 'plodding' - beats me.

In case you wonder why more obvious choices such as 'Dambusters' and 'Top Gun' don't get in, you'll have to read my 'TOP TEN FLYING MOVIES THAT DIDN'T MAKE IT TO MY TOP TEN FLYING MOVIE LIST' at a later date.

Jasper Fforde