Rainbow Five

Duration: 34 minutes

Producer: Joseph Temple

“What would you think of an American general staff which in the present condition of the world did not investigate and study every conceivable type of emergency which may confront this country?”
   –Secretary of War Henry Stimson, 1941

While Britain stands alone, the United States government secretly prepares itself for battle against Nazi Germany. With isolationist sentiment running strong, President Roosevelt asks for a secret plan to be drawn up, outlining the resources and materials needed to defeat Hitler, including long-range bombers. What surfaces becomes known as the Rainbow Five report, a document that gives birth to planes like the B-35 Flying Wing and the B-36 Peacemaker. Take a look at this little known footnote in Second World War history and how it almost brought down an administration.