Masters of the Air episode 6 saw Bucky reunited with Buck at a POW camp that might look familiar to movie buffs, especially fans of 1963 classic The Great Escape. But was Stalag Luft III from Masters of the Air ever real?
CONTENT SPOILERS: This article includes spoilers for the Apple TV series, Masters of the Air, so proceed with caution.
The Stalag Luft III Camp Also Appeared in 1963's The Great Escape
The Stalag Luft III camp was also featured in the 1963 film, The Great Escape, whose entire plot revolves around an impossible getaway from one of WWII's most impenetrable prisoner-of-war camps.
The film is based on a book by WWII POW Paul Brickhill, and centers on the dastardly escape plan plotted by Allied POWs.
In March 1943, Royal Air Force Squadron Leader Roger Bushell came up with the idea to get his 200 men out of camp.
They dug three tunnels to fool the German officers, so that once the decoy tunnel was discovered, the other two would become usable without any suspicion.
However, terrible weather struck, making the tunnel collapse, and only 76 of the men managed to escape.
As the rest were captured and their plan revealed, half of the men were sentenced to death, along with their leader, Squadron Leader Bushell. Ultimately, only three of the initial men successfully escaped.
The aforementioned camp seems to be the same location featured in Masters of the Air episode 6.
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Was Stalag Luft III from Masters of the Air A Real Camp?
Several commanders from the 100th Bomb Group, and their stories, which Masters of the Air tells, are grounded in historical fact, so it's understandable why fans are curious about Stalag Luft III.
Episode 6 of the Apple TV series shows Major John "Bucky" C Egan reuniting with Gale "Buck" Cleven at the Nazi POW camp in Poland.
Bucky is brought all the way through Nazi Germany aboard a train along with the other POWs and terrified Jewish prisoners, being taken to the concentration camp. And the camp is indeed based on one that existed in real life.
According to historic accounts, after Major Egan avenged his friend, Buck, he was taken to Stalag Luft III, where he was surprised to see his friend was still alive.
At the time, the first thing Cleven said to Egan was, "What the h*ll took you so long?" with the latter replying, "That's what I get for being sentimental!" and the dialogue appears verbatim in the episode.
Meanwhile, Masters of the Air episodes 1-6 are streaming on Apple TV+.
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