Goofs for
Rescue Dawn (2006) More at IMDbPro »

• Continuity: Dengler's Squadron was VA-145, the squadron painted on the side of his crashed Skyraider plainly says VA-25.
  
  
• Incorrectly regarded as goofs: When Dengler is rescued, he only lowers one prong on the jungle penetrator rescue seat instead of the two prongs as taught in survival training. This is explained in Dengler's book because he was "woozy and distant".
  
  
• Factual errors: Camouflage BDU's was not the uniform during the Vietnam War. Instead, soldiers wore green uniforms.
  
  

• Factual errors: Although a UH-60 Blackhawk is depicted on the poster, these aircraft were not built until after the Vietnam War.
  
  
• Factual errors: After the attack aircraft was hit, the instruments on the panel indicate a rate of descent far in excess of what was being depicted in the rest of the frame.
  
  
• Anachronisms: At the beginning (set in 1966), the pilots are making fun of a survival film. However, the survival film was made in 1967 according to the documentary "Little Dieter Needs to Fly".
  
  
• Anachronisms: Dengler has a navy blue passport; U.S. passports of the time were green. Near the end, a nurse removes clear tape from the IV in his hand; clear medical tape was not in use at the time.
  
  
• Crew or equipment visible: When Dieter is dragged behind the water buffalo shortly after his capture, you can see the tracks of the car dragging Christan Bale in the sand.
  
  
• Crew or equipment visible: At 1:19:35 , when Dieter steals the rifles from the hut and approaches the other prisoners before their attack on the kitchen, a crew member (wearing a cap) can be seen moving from the right of the screen to the left with a camera or some other equipment.
  
  
• Factual errors: Twice in the film Dengler is referred to as Flight Lieutenant Dengler. There is no such rank in the U.S. Navy, nor in the U.S. military. That's an RAF rank. Dengler was a Lieutenant Junior Grade, commonly called at LT JG (Lieutenant Jay Gee).
  
  
• Revealing mistakes: During Dieter's shoot-down scene, when the camera cuts to the flight instruments inside his plane, the altimeter is shown winding down rapidly from 57,000 feet yet he's just above the ground. Also note, the 10,000-foot indicator fails to move at all AND the rate of climb indicator shows a slight climb.
  
  
• Continuity: The type of aircraft changed in the crash scene: Dieter Dengler's aircraft was an AD-1 Skyraider. The tail section of the crashed aircraft in the rice paddy is most likely that of a North American AT-6 which has rounded vertical and horizontal tail profiles. The Skyraider has squared off tail profiles.
  
  
• Anachronisms: A Pelican case is visible during the first briefing. Pelican cases were not introduced until 1976.
  
  
• Factual errors: Helmet worn by Dengler as he flies his Skyraider is not the proper type. What's worn in the film was used by helicopter crews. Fixed wing tactical crews wore slightly narrower helmets (no bulges at the ears) which were typically white and had a tinted visor.
  
  
• Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): Shortly after being shot down, Dengler is seen randomly flashing his signal mirror in order to attract attention. The proper way to use such a mirror is to sight the rescue aircraft through the transparent circle in the center of the mirror, which then automatically aims the reflected light right at the aircraft.
  
  
• Anachronisms: The helicopter shown in the ready room survival film is far too new for the mid 1960s.
  
  
• Factual errors: The Narrator states that the aircraft is making an approach to the carrier Ranger, a Forestal class carrier. The carrier shown is a modified Essex class carrier commonly referred to as a 27C.
  
  
• Continuity: At the end of the scene in which Dieter is given the choice of signing the document condemning America, his glass of water magically gets refilled as he is taken away, and then goes back to its original level.
  
  
• Anachronisms: In the supply scene, the supply sailors are wearing modern blue utility shirts that were not in use until the 1990s.
  
  
• Anachronisms: The blue truck taking Dengler from the village in the beginning is clearly a contemporary model, not a 1960-era model.
  
  
• Factual errors: The man in the white shirt who captures Dengler speaks Thai (Issan dialect) instead of Vietnamese.
  
  
• Anachronisms: In the supply room scene, the sailors are shown with name tapes, and "U.S. NAVY" tapes on their dungaree uniform shirts. The US Navy did not use these until 1992. During the Viet Nam Era, Sailors either stenciled or hand printed their last name above their left breast pocket.
  
  
• Factual errors: During his captivity, Deiter is shown wearing his gold wedding band - something no American pilot would do. In case of capture, it gives away more than name rank and s/n - not to mention both the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese regulars appreciated gold as much as the next enemy (or ally) and likely wouldn't have let him keep it out of the kindness of their hearts and deep feelings for his family ties.
  
  
• Continuity: At several points during the film, Dengler can be seen wearing a wedding band, but he is not married because he and several other characters throughout the film make reference to his fiancé.
  
  
• Anachronisms: In the supply scene, before setting out for the mission, the U.S. passport Dieter shows is not only the wrong color (blue rather than green), but is also the smaller size in use today rather than the larger size in use at the time.
  
  
• Errors in geography: During the night time jungle scenes, calls of the Fowler's Toad (Bufo fowleri) are clearly heard. These toads are only found in North America.
  
  
• Anachronisms: The aircraft carrier presented in the opening sequence is supposedly the USS Ranger, however Dengler's plane takes off from an entirely different vessel.
  
  
• Continuity: When Dieter enters the camp there is a discussion where he mentions that he was just engaged the day before being shot down. Later in the film there are several instances where a gold wedding band is on his left hand.
  
  

• Factual errors: SPOILER: In the air to ground attack, the plane's 2.5" rockets are shown to be dropped like bombs; rockets are fired, not dropped. Even if the rockets in this instance were bombs, it would be rare for them to be dropped all at once.
  
  
• Continuity: SPOILER: When Deiter is finally rescued and in the helicopter, a camera angle from outside of the helicopter shows him holding a Butterfinger. However, the next camera angle from inside of the helicopter shows one of the soldiers handing the Butterfinger to Deiter, who looks at it as if it were his first time seeing it.
  
  
• Anachronisms: SPOILER: The rescue helicopter that lands at the base is a UH-1N, a variant that did not see service until 1970.
  
  
• Continuity: SPOILER: The rescue helicopter that picks up Dengler from the jungle is a Bell UH-1D; before landing at the base, it turns into a UH-1N with a different camouflage pattern.
  
  

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