A six-reel feature inspired by the early aviator Bessie Coleman (she died in an aerial accident the year of the film’s release), “The Flying Ace” is about Capt. Billy Stokes (Laurence Criner), a World War I veteran flier investigating a payroll robbery. His primary suspect is the station master (George Colvin), whose daughter (Kathryn Boyd) is being stalked by the fellow pilot Finley (Harold Platts). Like many race films, the movie is overflowing with action, romance, comedy and crime. Its most elaborate scene is an aerial dogfight between Stokes and Finley, with camera tricks that are the definition of movie magic.