In 1966, Dieter Dengler was shot down over Laos, captured, and, down to 85 pounds, escaped. Barefoot, surviving monsoons, leeches, and machete-wielding villagers, he was rescued. Now, near 60, living on Mt. Tamalpais, Dengler tells his story: a German lad surviving Allied bombings in World War II, postwar poverty, apprenticed to a smith, beaten regularly. At 18, he emigrates and peels potatoes in the U.S. Air Force. He leaves for California and college, then enlistment in the Navy to learn to fly. A quiet man of sorrows tells his story: war, capture, harrowing conditions, escape, and miraculous rescue. Where did he find the strength; how does he now live with his memories?
You can now watch Little Dieter Needs to Fly online on the following streaming providers in the United States.
| Directing | Werner Herzog | Director |
| Production | André Singer | Executive Producer |
| Production | Lucki Stipetić | Producer |
| Editing | Joe Bini | Editor |
| Editing | Glen Scantlebury | Editor |
| Editing | Rainer Standke | Editor |
| Writing | Werner Herzog | Writer |
| Camera | Peter Zeitlinger | Director of Photography |
| Crew | Peter Zeitlinger | Cinematography |
| Crew | Herbert Golder | Post Production Supervisor |
| Directing | Herbert Golder | Assistant Director |
| Sound | Ekkehart Baumung | Sound |
| Sound | Josh Rosen | Sound Editor |
