San Francisco California-1939: White Medium Size Airplane About To Take Off The

$149 · CommercialDirect license: commercial and editorial use. $149 flat from Stockfilm. Royalty-free worldwide license for commercial and editorial use, delivered as the restored 4K master.

Year1939
Decade1930s
LocationSan Francisco, California, United States
Duration6s
Price$149 USD
Collection1939 California

$149 · CommercialDirect license: commercial and editorial use

$149 USD flat · royalty-free worldwide · 4K restored master (MP4)

Need 10+ clips? Send your brief and get a curated shortlist →

Stockfilm licenses the rights identified in the applicable agreement. Additional use-specific review may be required. See the Licensing Guide and Archive Integrity.

White Medium Size Airplane About To Take Off The — Clip Details

Shot on 8mm film in 1939, this grainy black-and-white home movie captures a vintage airplane on a runway, likely at an airfield near San Francisco. The aircraft, a white medium-sized propeller plane, is positioned on the tarmac, appearing to prepare for takeoff. The footage exhibits classic Super 8 characteristics: high grain, soft focus, and subtle film scratches, evoking a nostalgic, historical atmosphere. The scene is static, with no visible people or movement beyond the plane's implied motion, offering a rare glimpse into early commercial aviation.

Licensing & Technical Details

Original Format: 8mm / Super 8 Home Movie
Shot details: Black & white
Resolution: 4K restored master (MP4)
License: Direct license: commercial and editorial use
Delivery: Instant Digital Download
Duration: 6s
Price: $149 USD
Clip ID: 127270525

Rights & Clearance

$149 · Commercial Direct license: commercial and editorial use. $149 flat from Stockfilm. Royalty-free worldwide license for commercial and editorial use, delivered as the restored 4K master.

No recognizable people, logos, or music are flagged. Lower-risk for commercial use, subject to your own review.

People visible: No
Logos / trademarks: No
Audible music: No

Flags come from automated catalog metadata, not a legal opinion. The source is an original 8mm / Super 8 Home Movie reel. For high-stakes commercial use, request a full rights review.

Source & Documentation

Source reel: Reel 1166 · 8mm · 5″ reel
Original reel label: may
Reel-level year note: 1939
Reel-level location note: california
Date: 1939 Estimated (Catalog estimate from the footage and file metadata; not independently confirmed.)
Date evidence: Catalog estimate. A reel-level note shows the same year, but the clip-to-reel link is itself a catalog match, so this is not counted as independent confirmation.
Location: San Francisco, California, United States Estimated (Catalog estimate from the footage and file metadata; not independently confirmed.)
Location evidence: Catalog estimate. A reel-level location note is linked, but the clip-to-reel link is itself a catalog match, so this is not counted as independent confirmation.
Licensing route: Direct license available from Stockfilm

Confidence labels are defined on Archive Integrity. Fields without a recorded value are shown as not recorded rather than assumed.

View source reel context Open Clip Documentation Record Request source information

Topics & Keywords

Archive Intelligence

Archive brief fit: Useful for 1930s aviation requests needing a brief archival insert of a propeller airplane on a runway near San Francisco.
Period detail: The frames may show late-1930s airfield activity, with a low-wing propeller aircraft, open runway ground, and no modern airport structures visible.
Home-movie behavior: The static distant framing suggests an amateur observer filming an aircraft from the edge of an airfield rather than staged production coverage.
What appears in frame: Visible elements include a light-colored propeller airplane, runway or tarmac, low horizon, open sky, distant ground line, film frame borders, and surface scratches.
Film character: The 8mm black-and-white scan has soft focus, heavy grain, mild exposure variation, frame-edge vignetting, and scratches that preserve the physical home-movie texture.
Edit role: An editor could use this as a short aviation cutaway, travel transition, prewar technology insert, or quiet memory beat before departure imagery.
Historical context: The clip gives visual context for small-scale airfield viewing and propeller aircraft travel in the late 1930s without identifying the airport or airline.
Research note: No people, logos, or private property are visible, but aircraft identity, airport location, and copyright status should be reviewed separately.
Research search match: Relevant searches include 1939 San Francisco airfield footage, 8mm vintage airplane runway, black-and-white propeller plane takeoff, and prewar aviation home movie.
Archive pairing path: Pair first with nearby shots from the same reel, then other San Francisco 1939 material, then 1930s airfields, airplanes, travel, and transportation themes.

Still Frames From This Clip

1939 San Francisco-area 8mm frame showing a light-colored propeller airplane positioned on a runway in the distance. — A distant propeller airplane sits or taxis on an open runway.

Black-and-white 8mm frame of a light propeller airplane on a runway near San Francisco, seen from a fixed distance. — The airplane remains distant against a low airfield horizon.

Soft black-and-white 8mm view of a light-colored airplane on an open runway, consistent with the 1939 San Francisco metadata. — A scratched film frame shows the airplane low on the horizon.

Distant 8mm frame of a light propeller aircraft on a San Francisco-area runway, with soft grain and dark frame edges. — The final frame keeps the aircraft in a distant runway view.

Visually Similar Clips