A passenger plane is on its way to Benghazi. Jimmy Stewart is "Frank Towns", the pilot. A sandstorm is ahead, but Stewart is taking it easy. When his co-pilot (Richard Attenborough) realizes the good alternatives have passed them and the sandstorm is bigger than thought, Stewart decides to go to a higher altitude to see just how big this sandstorm really is. He is too much into the sandstorm. An engine goes. There is no choice, but to land this plane. It lands, but breaks in two atop a sand dune. Some passengers have died. The rest of the survivors with Jimmy Stewart must find a way to survive in the middle of nowhere or will they go crazy?
Also in the cast: George Montgomery, Ernest Borgnine, Peter Finch, Dan Duryea, Hardy Kruger, Ian Bannen, Ronald Fraser, Christian Marquand, Gabrielle Tinti, Alex Montoya, Peter Bravos, William Aldrich and Barrie Chase.
Flyer, Paul Mantz gave his life for this film.
Remade in 2004 with Dennis Quaid, Flight Of The Phoenix (2004).
Runs 2 hours, 21 min.

The Flight of the Phoenix is a classic movie based on the novel of the same name by Elleston Trevor. Captain Frank Towns and his navigator Lew Moran are flying home a plane-full of oil riggers after their rig was shut down. During a huge sandstorm, the plane crashes in the middle of the Libyan desert. The survivors of the crash decide to sit tight and wait for their rescue until one of the passengers, a young aircraft designer, points out that they can build a new plane out of the wreckage and fly to safety. The survivors must band together to finish the plane as they battle the elements, lack of water, and eventually even each other. This is a great movie where everything comes together perfectly. Director Robert Aldrich tells a great story with characters the viewer really comes to know by the end of the movie. Overall, a great character study with plenty of tension and drama.

James Stewart gives an excellent performance as Captain Frank Towns, the doubting pilot who must try and fly a plane that he doesn't think will fly. Richard Attenborough stars as Lew Moran, Towns' navigator and friend with a troubled past. Peter Finch plays Captain Harris, the stiff-lipped British officer who plans to walk to safety. Hardy Kruger is perfect as Heinrich Dorfmann, the young aircraft designer who becomes obsessed with completing his plane. The excellent supporting cast includes Ernest Borgnine as Trucker Cobb, the "crazy" one, Ian Bannen as the sarcastic "Ratbags" Crow, Ronald Fraser as the cowardly Sgt. Watson, Christian Marquand as the noble Dr. Renaud, Dan Duryea as Standish, and George Kennedy as Bellamy. The DVD offers a cleaned up widescreen presentation and a theatrical trailer in English, Portuguese, and Spanish. For a classic, well-told story with a great cast, check out The Flight of the Phoenix!

"Flight of The Phoenix" is a terrific, old-fashioned action-adventure film, with an all-male (but for a mirage) cast led by James Stewart.
He plays a weathered pilot who crash lands a rickety plane, filled with the standard mixed-bag cast of characters, into the center of a vast Arabic desert.
As plots go, the plane happens to be filled with a killer set of tools AND an aerospace engineer.
These guys have to build a plane out of the wreckage, and fly out of the desert.
The cast is filled with great faces: Richard Attenborough, Peter Finch, Ernest Borgnine, Hardy Kruger, Ian Bannen, George Kennedy, Dan Duryea...
...and the opening has a nice bit of "24"-ish sudden death surprises.
The direction is brisk, with the occasional artistic indulgence; the screenplay is a bit weak...there's lots of plain, old, cringe-worthy lines, saved by the cast's formidable talent.
The transfer is probably as good as it's ever gonna get...the few flashes of color (like reds...) mixed in with the dreary desert palette pop off the screen.
No extras to speak of.

It's a great way to spend an afternoon, especially if, as I did, you have fond memories of this film from watching it on TV as a child.

Its been years since I saw Flight of the Phoenix on TV, but when I heard of the less then rave reviews for the 2004 remake, I was surprised to find a DVD version of the original movie on Amazon and bought it for a great price. We watched the movie last night. Neither my wife or kids (14-22) had seen it before. After hearing that the movie was from the "60's", the kids wondered out loud if it was in black and white. however, once it started, they were riveted by the drama. It was even better than I remembered. I liked the realistic interpersonal interaction between the different personalities of the characters. Since it isn't shown in either the original movie or the remake, I still wonder how they managed to land the Phoenix with all passengers able to walk away.

It's a little Man against Nature and Man against Man when a flight of men are stranded in the desert after their plane experiences engine trouble in a sand storm. Will they make it out alive? They try to send two men to find help. They try to negotiate for help with the locals. Finally, they realize their only hope is to cobble their broken airplane back together with the aid of poorly socialized genius. Will they get it off the ground? Will they even survive long enough to try? This is a wonderful story with a lot of heart. Jimmy Stewart as their aging pilot, Captain Townes, is wonderful. Highly recommended, but watch the new one as well. I think they did the original justice!