When world-famous air racer Dusty learns that his engine is damaged and he may never race again, he must shift gears and is launched into the world of aerial firefighting. Dusty joins forces with veteran fire and rescue helicopter Blade Ranger and his team, a bunch of all-terrain vehicles known as The Smokejumpers. Together, the fearless team battles a massive wildfire, and Dusty learns what it takes to become a true hero.

Set in the 1930s Depression era during Mardi Gras in New Orleans, the film covers three days in the lives of a trio of flying-circus performers, headlined by former WWI fighter-pilot hero Roger Shumann and his beautiful blonde wife, LaVerne. Romantic complications arise when newspaper reporter Burke Devlin falls in love with LaVerne while covering their daredevil aerial show.