Top Gun

[Dr Jekyll]

andrewws said:

This film has one of the best opening sequences you will ever see, downhill from there I'm afraid. I'll be your wingman anytime, yuk....

Does anyone else think the opening sequence might be inspired by the BBC Formula 1 opening sequence of the time? When they used Fleetwood Mac's The Chain as a soundtrack.

[Yertis]

Are they F5s in the movie? My often faulty memory suggests T38s.

[Eric Mc]

A quick check on youtube reveals what looks like four F-5s and one T-38.

[Hard-Drive]

Eric Mc said:

I always preferred the movie "The Final Countdown". Lots of Tomcats and other US Navy aircraft in that as well - and it was shot in 1978/79 before the US Navy removed all the really colourful markings from their carrier borne aircraft - so all the planes look better too.

Is that the one where a carrier goes back in time and serve up some whuppass to the Japanese navy?

[Eric Mc]

Hard-Drive said:

Eric Mc said:

I always preferred the movie "The Final Countdown". Lots of Tomcats and other US Navy aircraft in that as well - and it was shot in 1978/79 before the US Navy removed all the really colourful markings from their carrier borne aircraft - so all the planes look better too.

Is that the one where a carrier goes back in time and serve up some whuppass to the Japanese navy?

That's the one.

[cazzer]

Hard-Drive said:

cazzer said:

Forgot to mention I've been in the Bar in San Diego
As you were.

Ah well I've flown down Mission Beach at 500 feet (ish...) and over Viper's house!!! In a PA28 rather than an F14 but still cool!

Which is the bar by the way?

Bar? What bar? Dunno what ya mean....

[eharding]

DBSV8 said:

As it happens, I've spent today punting some visiting Indian Air Force chaps around in the Yak - both of whom flew the Mig 21, both currently on ground tours - and were only too pleased to get some stick time and the opportunity for some aerobatic hooliganism; despite not having flown for a while, you can tell that you have to be very, very good to have flown the Mig 21 - and for one of them more recently the Mirage - the formation skills and pure stick and rudder talent of fast jet drivers were just slotted straight back in (although banging on 6g in a loop entry at one point was a bit fruity)

The relevance to this thread, however, was that initial introductions were a bit rushed before we got airborne, and I'm terrible with names, so I initially referred to the senior of the two when he was sat in the back as "Air Commodore" over the intercom - I could remember that much.

After a few minutes, he keyed the intercom and said "Please..just use my callsign -it's 'Moose'. Call me Moose".

After reading this thread last night, the urge to say "Talk to me, Moose" was almost...almost overwhelming...but then I decided having a back-seater with a callsign that rhymes with "Goose" might be a bad omen, and didn't press the button.

[Crimson Tide]

Eric Mc said:

Jasandjules said:

Soundtrack is good, but it irritates me using F5s as Mig 21s.

Not too many MiG 21s were available to use in films in 1986.

Mig 28s wasn't it? Which are even harder to find!

[Eric Mc]

Crimson Tide said:

Eric Mc said:

Jasandjules said:

Soundtrack is good, but it irritates me using F5s as Mig 21s.

Not too many MiG 21s were available to use in films in 1986.

Mig 28s wasn't it? Which are even harder to find!

Already been reminded of this.

MiGs only ever get "odd" numbers alocated to them.

[williamp]

SleeperCell said:

Jasandjules said:

Eric Mc said:

Jasandjules said:

Soundtrack is good, but it irritates me using F5s as Mig 21s.

Not too many MiG 21s were available to use in films in 1986.

No I know, but still..... A plane called the Freedom Fighter instead?

Actually they were F-5Es so have the nickname of Tiger instead of Freedom Fighter.

Also the Americans did actually have quite a few MiGs at that time, but it was all supposed to be secret so they couldn't exactly show them on film.

They could probably have used IAI Kfirs as well (Mirage airframe hotrodded with a Phantom J79 engine by the Israelis). Mirages are perfectly plausible aircraft for a 'rouge state' to operate and the US also openly operated them as agressor aircraft for a while in the mid 80s, perhaps a bit late for Topgun but they did make it into the awful movie Iron Eagle, (although they were actually all Israeli aircraft since the USAF refused to cooperate on a script involving stolen aircraft ).

Havent seen Iron Eagle, but we all thought the agressors used Saab Dracken as the agressor aircraft

[ukwill]

eharding said:

DBSV8 said:

As it happens, I've spent today punting some visiting Indian Air Force chaps around in the Yak - both of whom flew the Mig 21, both currently on ground tours - and were only too pleased to get some stick time and the opportunity for some aerobatic hooliganism; despite not having flown for a while, you can tell that you have to be very, very good to have flown the Mig 21 - and for one of them more recently the Mirage - the formation skills and pure stick and rudder talent of fast jet drivers were just slotted straight back in (although banging on 6g in a loop entry at one point was a bit fruity)

The relevance to this thread, however, was that initial introductions were a bit rushed before we got airborne, and I'm terrible with names, so I initially referred to the senior of the two when he was sat in the back as "Air Commodore" over the intercom - I could remember that much.

After a few minutes, he keyed the intercom and said "Please..just use my callsign -it's 'Moose'. Call me Moose".

After reading this thread last night, the urge to say "Talk to me, Moose" was almost...almost overwhelming...but then I decided having a back-seater with a callsign that rhymes with "Goose" might be a bad omen, and didn't press the button.

[Eric Mc]

williamp said:

SleeperCell said:

Jasandjules said:

Eric Mc said:

Jasandjules said:

Soundtrack is good, but it irritates me using F5s as Mig 21s.

Not too many MiG 21s were available to use in films in 1986.

No I know, but still..... A plane called the Freedom Fighter instead?

Actually they were F-5Es so have the nickname of Tiger instead of Freedom Fighter.

Also the Americans did actually have quite a few MiGs at that time, but it was all supposed to be secret so they couldn't exactly show them on film.

They could probably have used IAI Kfirs as well (Mirage airframe hotrodded with a Phantom J79 engine by the Israelis). Mirages are perfectly plausible aircraft for a 'rouge state' to operate and the US also openly operated them as agressor aircraft for a while in the mid 80s, perhaps a bit late for Topgun but they did make it into the awful movie Iron Eagle, (although they were actually all Israeli aircraft since the USAF refused to cooperate on a script involving stolen aircraft ).

Havent seen Iron Eagle, but we all thought the agressors used Saab Dracken as the agressor aircraft

In the film or in real life?

[Crimson Tide]

Eric Mc said:

Already been reminded of this.

My apologies.

[JW911]

For anyone who hasn't seen it:

Iceman - The Later Years

[Famous Graham]

The bar in San Diego was called "Kansas BBQ" on Market St. I say "was" because it suffered a horrendous fire when I was there back in June. Ironically named, I guess.

By the way, it's the bar where Goose plays Great Balls of Fire, NOT the one where Kelly McGillis gets sung at.

[munky]

Just spotted this interesting little article!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politic...

[p4cks]

that link said:

Foremost among the Royal Navy pilots was Lt Commander Dick Lord's whose work on the tactics group was the founding on which the "original eight Topgun instructors built their course"

Dicklords. Mwuahahahhahaha

[Eric Mc]

Which was et up first, the US Navy's Top Gun school or the USAF "Red Flag" exercises?

The RAF had in place a tactical training school at RAF Manby called the College of Air Warfare - mainly using Jet Provosts.

[munky]

Eric Mc said:

Which was et up first, the US Navy's Top Gun school or the USAF "Red Flag" exercises?

The RAF had in place a tactical training school at RAF Manby called the College of Air Warfare - mainly using Jet Provosts.

I've flown a JP - good fun. Will hopefully get the chance again soon - it has been grounded for a while.

[Eric Mc]

What version?

I think the RAF College of Air Warfre used JP3s and/or 4s rather than the later 5s.

Edited by Eric Mc on Wednesday 25th March 11:47