Anyone knows how to fix this without using these patches? I would like to keep the game as close to the original as possible.
Also the empty Movies.cdf trick doesn't work.

I've searched forever for a solution to this. Did you have any luck?

I really don't like that the only way to play this game is with the 1.28c or above patch that has a modder tweaked flight model that is way too prone to spin as well as enemies that will never let you escape and will follow you across the English channel all the way back to your base if you try to flee.

Does the GOG "plain vanilla" version not work?!

Yeah the vanilla version will crash on every career when it shows an in-career movie. An in-career movie will happen after 3-9 missions depending on what career/aircraft you are using.

It will crash on load for that career as well after it tries to show the first movie. So basically career mode is totally broken in the vanilla version.

An easy test is to start a career flying the Tempest for the British. Start and immediately end three missions in a row and you will get the crash.

" a modder tweaked flight model that is way too prone to spin"

It' a matter of skill:

Check this post re- EAW careers using UAW160:

UAW160 Career Test

In that mission I got into two spins, but was able to regain control.

It was this thread that prompted me to check career flying in UAW160.

Then what's the point of selling the game on GOG? One would think that it would work? Does the 1.28 version work for playing a career?

I tried the GoG 1.28 in career mode. I flew a 1943 US career in P-47C

On the deck I pressed Alt-N to get to the target area and then quit. When I got back to the office screen I started the next mission immediately. In all I flew 11 missions.

There were no videos and no CTDs

The screenies I took are in a the post that I made at SimHQ. The link is in my previous post here.

UAW160 Career Test

A ugly workaround I found is to install 1.28 in a separate directory. Play the GOG version unmodded until you get the career crash. Then copy your save file into the 1.28 directory, load the career there, start the next mission, abort it, then copy the save back into the unmodded GOG version and you can play the next mission. Unfortunately it requires you to abort the mission that crashes the GOG version so you'll always have a failed mission in your career

My point exactly. NVM you can rely on GOG to supply you with all the "latest Jap visual porno novels" though - just don't expect much with all the true "good old games". I notice the "most helpful review" seems to declare that GOG incorporated the "best of v1.28 in a seamless work out of box", that "scharmer" guy was completely orgasmic about it all! (146 out 150 found it helpful? HA! It's just lies now GOG have sunk back to pedalling v1.2!)
Well that doesn't sound like the shithole v1.20 version they only supply now!!!!!!!!

So where IS this v1.28 then? All I can find is dead links and sites that generate "attack warnings"!

Check the SimHQ EAW forum

https://simhq.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/4641284/career-test-pics#Post4641284