In Spring 1942, Grady, a 17 year-old seaplane pilot, will stop at nothing to join the hunt for the German U-boat that killed his aviator father while rescuing merchant seamen off the U.S. East Coast (inspired by historical events).

SYNOPSIS:

It is spring 1942. German U-boats are attacking U.S. east coast shipping, hampering the war effort.

On the same day flight instructor and former Naval Aviator, HARLAN SNYDER (45), certifies his son, GRADY SNYDER (17), in their Grumman Widgeon amphibious airplane, he is killed by CAPTAIN WOLF (30), a German U-boat captain, while rescuing survivors from a torpedo attack off Atlantic City.

Grady joins the Civil Air Patrol, a civilian volunteer organization that uses its own airplanes to ferry equipment and people and patrol the coast on the lookout for German submarines.

He skips school to keep flying patrol missions out of Atlantic City but his mother finds out and sells his airplane to the Coast Guard.

Grady's teacher agrees to let Grady take a high school equivalency test in exchange for joining the military.

The Coast Guard have no pilots available to fly the Widgeon, so they allow Grady to fly it temporarily for them. Grady jumps at the chance and soon also enlists an orphan, KENNY WINTERS (12), who likes to hang around the Atlantic City airfield as a mechanic apprentice.

He is then offered the chance to help fill a patrol gap at Naval Air Station Cape May, where they meet BILLY HOGAN (18), the local Civil Air Patrol hotshot and resident jerk flies. Grady also meets RITA SMITH (18), the daughter of CAPTAIN SMITH (45), NAS Cape May's Commanding Officer. Grady and Billy battle for Rita's favor, who just wants to be a pilot but her dad won't allow it (it's not lady like).

Grady and Billy get into a scuffle when Grady finds out Billy sabotaged his plane in a devious competition to be the first one to report a U-boat sighting.

Kenny and Grady then pick up survivors from a U-boat attack and respond to Billy's call for help after he's shot down by the same U-boat that killed Grady's father. The U-boat is aground on the beach. Grady attacks the U-boat with only a shotgun, calls in for more support, but none comes.

Grady has to return to base to refuel but the U-boat is gone when he returns. Grady picks Billy up, they regroup to fight another day.

As a result of the failure to get the grounded U-boat, the War Department authorizes depth charges for all Civil Air Patrol aircraft that are capable of carrying them. They practice bombing runs.

Grady, Billy, and Kenny are assigned to fly as an escort for a troop ship departing for Europe. Captain Wolf is waiting and the fight is on!

Grady manages to warn the troop ship to avoid the U-boat's torpedoes, scores a near hit on the U-boat, but an engine gives out and makes them a sitting Widgeon for Captain Wolf.

They manage to deploy their depth charge under U-boat machine gun fire. Their last depth charge doesn't do the job and right when the machine gun has them in their sights, Captain Smith in a Navy PBY destroys Captain Wolf and his U-boat.

Captain Smith, Grady, Billy, and Kenny all receive medals for valor. Grady passes his equivalency exam and is allowed to go enter the Navy flight program. Rita also convinces her father that flying is what she wants to do, just like her dad, and is allowed to join the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron to help the war effort as a pilot.

THE END