@@RemlapL99 I know but what I'm saying is on many occasions Simon has indicated his love of the first movie. I'm questioning why? The movie isn't much better than a propaganda film in my eyes. I was 15 in 85 when it came out. Waited years to watch it and wasn't impressed when I did
That confidence is really key. A retired Air Force fighter pilot I met when I was a teenager told me that you have to have the fighter pilot's mentality if you want to be a pilot, and he said, "if you want to be a fighter pilot you have to know that you are the best. If you are not the best, that other guy could be, and if he is, you are dead."
I worked as a civilian contractor on NAS Fallon about 21 years ago. Getting to go through most of the facilities and getting to see all of the fighter jets was an amazing experience.
@@Kriss_L I was part of an engineering crew that drew up the plans for running fiber optic cable to most of the buildings on base. I remember the NSAWC as being one of the most secure buildings I ever went in. All electronics were confiscated in the lobby and a guy with a gun escorted us everywhere.
Simon, I recommend you make a video on the USAF’s version of “Top Gun”, aka U.S. Air Force Weapons School. The Navy’s Fighter Weapons School “Top Gun” is nine weeks long. By comparison, the Air Force Weapons School “Top Gun” is just shy of six months!
I used to be stationed on an aircraft carrier and one of our pilots went to the school at one point. I can't remember the exact amount, but apparently students are fined every time they make a reference to the Top Gun film.
that’s actually a fact. a fine of $5 is imposed onto anybody in there who references, or even say a line from, and I quote, “a certain movie from 1986”…
This is one of Simon’s best videos! Appreciate it. Hope similar videos on the US Air Force Red Flag program, the National Training Center, & SERE (Survival-Evasion-Resistance-Escape) School as well.
Another Fun Fact: San Diego is an important Navy City. Both Top Gun and Navy SEALS / BUDS have roots in San Diego. Top Gun trained at Miramar just north of San Diego. It has since moved to the desert in Nevada. Navy SEALS train at Coronado Beach in San Diego. Also, NAS (Naval Air Station) San Diego and Amphibious Units are in San Diego. Years ago, I was staying at the famous Del Coronado Hotel and saw jet fighters coming and going under 100 feet off the water. Both of the Movies Top Gun and American Sniper were filmed in and around San Diego.
When I was first stationed at NAS Miramar we shared a hanger with "Top Gun", they used A-4's and F-5's as the aggressor aircraft. The reason for this was they were more maneuverable than the F-4's and F-14's. Also if you remember the movie, the volleyball scene, i forced them to reshoot that as blew threw running lights and siren. Those were the days. We also stopped a stuntman at gunpoint as the PR people didn't notify us about them being on the active airfield,
Good timing, Paper Skies also recently made a video on the Soviet version of Top Gun program released last week as well. Top Gun Maverick is bringing out all the Top Gun feels again.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If we were to go through our life without any obstacles, we would be crippled. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. Give every opportunity a chance, leave no room for regrets
Great video about the Navy's fighter school and its impact on the air war over Vietnam. Nice to see that the Air Force's F-105 fighter-bomber was selected for a couple cameo shots.
I was stationed in Fallon, at FRC WEST Det Fallon running the 71C shop, directly supporting SFWPD "Topgun". Saw it all up close, even got to touch the F-5 that plays the "MIG" in the movie. Could've been a backseater in it for a flight, but I'm too tall to fit. Still was cool seeing them in action.
Well done Simon and team. Well researched and presented. In 1977, my first assignment in the Navy was VF-211 in hanger 1 at NAS Miramar, right next to Top Gun. Interesting times.
Great! Really big aircraft nut so this is right up my street. Thanks Simon I always love watching your shows I learn a lot about subjects I am interested in. All the best.
Its amazing how back to basics can work so effectively on a battlefield. I mean, don't go charging at an AK wielding enemy soldier with a sharpened flint axe... or perhaps do, because they won't see it coming. And you'll get posthumous mad lad points too. You'll be dead... but a certified, 101-proof, top shelf legend.
That figure is somewhat misleading, the viet cong would draw away the phantoms with mig 15s and then hit the F-105 squadrons that couldent defend themselves with mig 21s, but they did shoot us down quite a bit in dogfights too
Break it down month-by-month; it was the reverse in some months. Also, the US lied about our kill ratio in Korea, which they said was 15:1 when it was closer to 1.5:1 to 2:1. Thus there were no lessons learned because we thought we were so kick-ass.
Great video! You informed me how this great program started and how it made our pilots better than the enemies. I know our pilots in WW2 had problems until the right planes came along and then they destroyed most planes they faced.
WWII allied pilots did started with crappy planes in general, but it allowed them to utilize them in the most effective way possible, honing the skills and techniques to make even those crappy planes into deadly fighting machines… and when they finally received much more effective aircraft, the fight basically turned from neck & neck, to lopsided… so lopsided in fact, that enemy planes were dropping like flies sprayed with insecticide…
@@hanschristianben505 Don't discount the fact that the allies rotated their pilots back to their respective bases to pass on what they learned to new recruits. The Axis aces had ours over a barrel in terms of kill numbers, however all that knowledge was lost each time one of their best was downed, this eventually led to their downfall, regardless of their quite capable machinery.
@@GankbotShuk oh yes, that one too, the Allies’ other crucial advantage was just that, bringing back those who not only survive their tour of duty, but have them teach what they learned, especially those who became so effective in their fight (like the fighter aces)… this in turn raised the level of the new drafts when they first entered the war, which made them more effective in their planes, which in turn allowed them to come home to their families and teach even more recruits… coupled with newer, more superior planes coming online, they basically decimated the Axis’ military service branches to the point that they ceased at being an effective fighting force upto the end of the war…
Another Fun Fact: Exercise Red Flag (also Red Flag - Nellis) is a two-week advanced aerial combat training exercise held several times a year by the United States Air Force. It aims to offer realistic air-combat training for military pilots and other flight crew members from the United States and allied countries.
The USAF did a study after Vietnam called the Red Baron Report, they found that if a pilot survived the 1st 10 combat missions, their chance of survival throughout the whole conflict improved drastically so the USAF created the Red Flag combat exercise.
I had to go to Fallon NV (where Top Gun training really happens, not Miramar) 4 different times in 2 squadrons. It was always winter and freezing cold. The pilots loved it because of the live bomb range and inter service operations, or flying against the air force. The pilots get a lot of training, we maintainers worked long hours, got cold, got drunk at bowling alley, and did it again for a month.
Something to be said for the school at Miramar that the USAF had started something much like it in the 1950's. It was called the Fighter Weapons School based at Nellis AFB near Las Vegas. The Army also opened an advanced school for their forces at Ft Irwin Advanced schooling for our military has been a staple ever since the Vietnam War as that conflict opened up a window into what our armed forces had been missing. So at this time in the US we have a military that excels at moving, shooting and communicating. Looking at the current conflict in the Ukraine has brought to light problems with these same tenets just mentioned in the Russian military. Russian forces pushing into Ukraine struggled to coordinate these same tenets just between Companies and Divisions. Something that the US military puts to the test almost daily. Our men and women learning to shoot, move and communicate and coordinate all of this with other forces and services. These things are ALWAYS struggle anytime you bring a bunch of humans together, but having advanced schools teaching these tenets helps immeasurably.
I live in Reno, Nevada. Fallon, Nevada (which for the record was the very first time I got drunk legally) is only about 1 hour outside Reno by car. Two years ago, we had a jet from Fallon have a major malfunction, and the Reno airport has a series of catch cables for jets. It landed here, was fixed, and returned to service. I assume the pilot hat to change his shorts after the landing.
I heard an anecdote about the development of the F14. a test pilot and former F4 pilot looked over the design and said, "where's the gun?" every time a new fighter comes out, especially with the 5th gen and looming 6th gen fighters coming out, nobody thinks guns or dogfighting are relevant anymore but I doubt positive-ID is going away any time soon, so BVR missiles may not dominate as much as they think. Hell, guys on the ground often can't shoot until they positively ID an enemy combatant. pilots and technology will find a way to avoid a missile, whether countermeasures, outmaneuvering, or politicians who have no idea what they're talking about stick their two-cents in.
They used to do maneuvers through my area they had to quit popping the sound barrier in this rural area because they were breaking too many windows. We got some Wicked Wild air currents right here. Oh and as far as I know other countries started doing the same thing after they've seen the results of America's Top Gun Academy.
@@cab6273 - didn’t said USN/USMC F-4s had guns or used them during their air-to-air victories, but they did carried the gun pod in several occasions, like ground attack/CAS missions
@@cab6273 Technically, yes, you are correct. However, since the Navy opted not to adopt the nose-cone cannon-equipped F-4E variant (made available 1965/66,) they instead would often mount gun-pods onto their aircraft; these improvised measures often proving unreliable. However, occasionally these mounts did work as intended. How often the gun-pods were used (successfully) after Top Gun learned tactics were implemented is unclear since the improvised mounted gun-pods were not officially sanctioned by the U.S. military command and so may not have been acknowledged for this reason. So, yes, the USN did not use F-4s that were production equipped with guns, but that doesn't mean they didn't have guns. At any rate, thanks for the intriguing information, it did shed a good bit of light on the whole "gun/no gun" situation with the Phantoms. 😉
@@hanschristianben505 lol, I wish I had read your comment before I decided to go on a mission trying to find out the accuracy of the replied to comment. I came to the same conclusion.
Top Gun is in Fallon, Nevada. One of the Biggest jet bases in the US is located at Lemore, California, in the middle of the Central Valley near Fresno. Neither are near the water but they have a lot of air space to work with.
And the tradition is carried on in 2687 by the Star League Defense Force's Advanced Combat and Maneuvering Skills Project or better known as "The Gunslinger Program."
TLDR: The Air Force added a gun to the F-4. The Navy created top gun. Missiles continued to be the primary weapon and the Navy pilots were much more effective.
Simon seems to be speaking much faster in his recent videos than in his Top Tenz days. And, his hands seem to be flailing about dangerously. I hope that he doesn't hurt any of his coworkers.
I don’t think Randy Cunningham attended Top Gun prior to his five victories. He did benefit from the Top Gun graduates/training officers in his squadron, as well as the training “road shows” Top Gun provided to deploying squadrons.
There is another fact that should be shared. When the planes that came out to replace the F-4's, the students, with their arrogance, thought the F-4s would be easy prey. In the first week they learned a variable lesson, it is the pilot, not the plane, that makes the plane dangerous.
I'm surprised there was no mention that the USAF was teaching aerial gunnery and dogfighting long before Top Gun as the USAF Fighter Weapons School (WS) at Nellis AFB and was an influence on the recommendations in the Ault Report. Unlike Top Gun, the USAF WS program is more intense, encompasses a broader understanding of aerial warfare and lasts 6-months compared to Top Gun's 9-13 weeks.
About the only fighter pilots that are possibly better than Top Gun graduates are the Israelis. There was a squadron that came to the US to do aerial combat training (dogfighting) against Marine and Navy pilots flying the F-18. I caught a piece of this when 2 jets broke the no fly zone over San Onofre nuclear power plant. I noticed from a distance as they were approaching that the plane on the six of the other aircraft had only one vertical stabilizer and didn't look like an F-16. When they shot by, I saw the Star of David on it, the delta wing, and realized it was a Mirage. Some interviews with some of our pilots on the news a few days later were interesting. Everyone said the Israelis were the toughest pilots they'd ever flown against, and a couple of them claimed the Israelis were also the craziest pilots they'd ever scene and did things that were supposed to be impossible with the Mirage. The Isrealis said the Navy and Marine pilots were the best they'd ever flown against and were happy they were allies.
Dunno who Dan Patterson is or why you couldn't be bothered to double check, but LCmdr. Dan Pedersen was the officer in charge of establishing the School
On another UA-cam video, a former Navy JAG officer talks about the crimes of Maverick. He said in reality that movie is over the moment Maverick lands and he is met by the MP and court martialed for disobeying the direct order of his CO.
Simon just wanted to talk about his favorite movie and I'm ok with it
Half expecting a 3:45 for the theme song to play after he said topGun 😂 alittlr more busi.. brain blaze
I think I can speak for all top gun fans when I say that this is long overdue
as a Brit, why does Simon like this movie much? The first one was nothing more than Reagan era American rah-rah drivel
@@mattcombs6613jets are awsome
@@RemlapL99 I know but what I'm saying is on many occasions Simon has indicated his love of the first movie. I'm questioning why? The movie isn't much better than a propaganda film in my eyes. I was 15 in 85 when it came out. Waited years to watch it and wasn't impressed when I did
That confidence is really key. A retired Air Force fighter pilot I met when I was a teenager told me that you have to have the fighter pilot's mentality if you want to be a pilot, and he said, "if you want to be a fighter pilot you have to know that you are the best. If you are not the best, that other guy could be, and if he is, you are dead."
I worked as a civilian contractor on NAS Fallon about 21 years ago. Getting to go through most of the facilities and getting to see all of the fighter jets was an amazing experience.
I was stationed there (NSAWC) for three years. It was interesting, and I learned a lot about Naval Aviation.
@@Kriss_L I was part of an engineering crew that drew up the plans for running fiber optic cable to most of the buildings on base. I remember the NSAWC as being one of the most secure buildings I ever went in. All electronics were confiscated in the lobby and a guy with a gun escorted us everywhere.
@@jondough76 When I was there, none of our security guards were armed ('06-'09).
@@Kriss_L I know there was one building I went in with armed security, and I though it was that one but I could be mistaken. I was there in '01.
Simon, I recommend you make a video on the USAF’s version of “Top Gun”, aka U.S. Air Force Weapons School. The Navy’s Fighter Weapons School “Top Gun” is nine weeks long. By comparison, the Air Force Weapons School “Top Gun” is just shy of six months!
I used to be stationed on an aircraft carrier and one of our pilots went to the school at one point. I can't remember the exact amount, but apparently students are fined every time they make a reference to the Top Gun film.
🤣😂😂 Hey they made that movie for recruiting, it ain't fair for them to get bent out of shape if the pilots happen to like it!
that’s actually a fact. a fine of $5 is imposed onto anybody in there who references, or even say a line from, and I quote, “a certain movie from 1986”…
@@hanschristianben505 Which probably means that the instructors know every line from that movie by heart 😉
@@peterholzer4481 - I’m not surprised if the collected fines can reach high enough to buy multiple rounds in their bar 🤭🤣
So that would imply that most of the film is bull****, forget about what you learned in the film and now take a lesson from the real Topgun school.
This is one of Simon’s best videos! Appreciate it. Hope similar videos on the US Air Force Red Flag program, the National Training Center, & SERE (Survival-Evasion-Resistance-Escape) School as well.
Another Fun Fact: San Diego is an important Navy City. Both Top Gun and Navy SEALS / BUDS have roots in San Diego. Top Gun trained at Miramar just north of San Diego. It has since moved to the desert in Nevada. Navy SEALS train at Coronado Beach in San Diego. Also, NAS (Naval Air Station) San Diego and Amphibious Units are in San Diego. Years ago, I was staying at the famous Del Coronado Hotel and saw jet fighters coming and going under 100 feet off the water. Both of the Movies Top Gun and American Sniper were filmed in and around San Diego.
By NAS San Diego I assume you mean NAS North Island.
@@Kriss_L Thanks for comment... yes NAS North Island.
Perfect timing. Just finished watching the story of the Soviet Topgun on Paper Skies.
Yeah good timing.
02:12 - Do a Megaproject on the MiG 21 fishbed if you please!
We'd all love that!
When I was first stationed at NAS Miramar we shared a hanger with "Top Gun", they used A-4's and F-5's as the aggressor aircraft. The reason for this was they were more maneuverable than the F-4's and F-14's. Also if you remember the movie, the volleyball scene, i forced them to reshoot that as blew threw running lights and siren. Those were the days. We also stopped a stuntman at gunpoint as the PR people didn't notify us about them being on the active airfield,
Steve!!!!!!!!! How are you? Where are you? How do we connect?
@@tolson57Well I wasn't expecting that. Still alive and live in Texas.
Good timing, Paper Skies also recently made a video on the Soviet version of Top Gun program released last week as well.
Top Gun Maverick is bringing out all the Top Gun feels again.
I'm a Fallon NV resident. Love watching the flying squid's!
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If we were to go through our life without any obstacles, we would be crippled. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. Give every opportunity a chance, leave no room for regrets
Failure is the best teacher, aligns strongly with struggle.
I love how the explanation of what Top Gun is in the movie, is pretty much spot on.
Great video about the Navy's fighter school and its impact on the air war over Vietnam. Nice to see that the Air Force's F-105 fighter-bomber was selected for a couple cameo shots.
Ward Carroll has a good website he's a former F14 backseater,
Good info there
Ward's channel is excellent! I'd also recommend checking out The Fighter Pilot Podcast too. The host was an instructor at Top Gun.
I was stationed in Fallon, at FRC WEST Det Fallon running the 71C shop, directly supporting SFWPD "Topgun". Saw it all up close, even got to touch the F-5 that plays the "MIG" in the movie. Could've been a backseater in it for a flight, but I'm too tall to fit. Still was cool seeing them in action.
Well done Simon and team. Well researched and presented. In 1977, my first assignment in the Navy was VF-211 in hanger 1 at NAS Miramar, right next to Top Gun. Interesting times.
The F4E was first to get a built in gun. M-61 Vulcan 20mm Cannon. I flew this variant.
That look they give you when you call a naval aviator a pilot. 😂
0:45 - Chapter 1 - Background
3:50 - Chapter 2 - The foundations
5:25 - Chapter 3 - The need for speed
9:00 - Chapter 4 - Over the skies of Vietnam
Great! Really big aircraft nut so this is right up my street. Thanks Simon I always love watching your shows I learn a lot about subjects I am interested in. All the best.
0:40 background
3:45 the foundations
5:19 the need for speed
8:57 over the skies of Vietnam
Helpful in protecting and preserving this Great Country. And it served as the basis for now 2 Bad Ass movies.
Just had these guys out here to Pax River a couple weeks ago. Always fun to fly against the best.
It's cool to see a Megaprojects that features something that was created in my home town San Diego.
Has anyone else read Dan Paterson's book "Top Gun, An American Story"? Its absolutely fascinating
Its amazing how back to basics can work so effectively on a battlefield.
I mean, don't go charging at an AK wielding enemy soldier with a sharpened flint axe... or perhaps do, because they won't see it coming.
And you'll get posthumous mad lad points too.
You'll be dead... but a certified, 101-proof, top shelf legend.
I'm dissapoined he didn't even say Danger zone once
Yeah, i agree - British love puns. Opportunities lost !
I don't think he even got inverted
the principal of Top Gun was to ride a bike, sing some timeless classics, play beach volleyball and just generally be awesome
if a fighter pilot comes in with that mindset in the real TOPGUN school, he/she would certainly not last the course…
@@hanschristianben505 the joke wooshed over your head at mach 5!
@@RolloTonéBrownTown - I was actually thinking of going Mach 10 so they can put it in my Pentagon…errr I mean…personal budget 🤭
What a fantastic channel, I stumbled across this through Lazerpig and now you've eaten my entire day. Well played sir.
Good grief I didn’t actually think the kill ratio fell to as low as 2:1 😮
Great video 👍
That figure is somewhat misleading, the viet cong would draw away the phantoms with mig 15s and then hit the F-105 squadrons that couldent defend themselves with mig 21s, but they did shoot us down quite a bit in dogfights too
Break it down month-by-month; it was the reverse in some months. Also, the US lied about our kill ratio in Korea, which they said was 15:1 when it was closer to 1.5:1 to 2:1. Thus there were no lessons learned because we thought we were so kick-ass.
Great video! You informed me how this great program started and how it made our pilots better than the enemies. I know our pilots in WW2 had problems until the right planes came along and then they destroyed most planes they faced.
WWII allied pilots did started with crappy planes in general, but it allowed them to utilize them in the most effective way possible, honing the skills and techniques to make even those crappy planes into deadly fighting machines…
and when they finally received much more effective aircraft, the fight basically turned from neck & neck, to lopsided… so lopsided in fact, that enemy planes were dropping like flies sprayed with insecticide…
@@hanschristianben505 Don't discount the fact that the allies rotated their pilots back to their respective bases to pass on what they learned to new recruits. The Axis aces had ours over a barrel in terms of kill numbers, however all that knowledge was lost each time one of their best was downed, this eventually led to their downfall, regardless of their quite capable machinery.
@@GankbotShuk oh yes, that one too, the Allies’ other crucial advantage was just that, bringing back those who not only survive their tour of duty, but have them teach what they learned, especially those who became so effective in their fight (like the fighter aces)… this in turn raised the level
of the new drafts when they first entered the war, which made them more effective in their planes, which in turn allowed them to come home to their families and teach even more recruits…
coupled with newer, more superior planes coming online, they basically decimated the Axis’ military service branches to the point that they ceased at being an effective fighting force upto the end of the war…
Another Fun Fact: Exercise Red Flag (also Red Flag - Nellis) is a two-week advanced aerial combat training exercise held several times a year by the United States Air Force. It aims to offer realistic air-combat training for military pilots and other flight crew members from the United States and allied countries.
The USAF did a study after Vietnam called the Red Baron Report, they found that if a pilot survived the 1st 10 combat missions, their chance of survival throughout the whole conflict improved drastically so the USAF created the Red Flag combat exercise.
@@EddieF14 Thanks for comment... I learned something new
I didn't know it was a real thing. Interesting. Thanks, Simon and crew!
Well done Simon- you kept it above the Hard Deck 👍
9:49 so a Top Gun graduate out performed an enemy pilot so drastically he made the other guy rage quit.
Ah yes, the SR 72, much younger Sibling of the SR 71 Blackbird and A12 Archangel
Reaching Mach 10. 4 in the much more recent Top Gun film!
I had to go to Fallon NV (where Top Gun training really happens, not Miramar) 4 different times in 2 squadrons. It was always winter and freezing cold. The pilots loved it because of the live bomb range and inter service operations, or flying against the air force. The pilots get a lot of training, we maintainers worked long hours, got cold, got drunk at bowling alley, and did it again for a month.
Perfect timing! I was arguing with my buddy who claimed the school didn't exist! Brilliant!
Neither of you have Google? Haha😉
'The Fighter Pilot Podcast' is a thing, dude. 🤠
Something to be said for the school at Miramar that the USAF had started something much like it in the 1950's. It was called the Fighter Weapons School based at Nellis AFB near Las Vegas. The Army also opened an advanced school for their forces at Ft Irwin Advanced schooling for our military has been a staple ever since the Vietnam War as that conflict opened up a window into what our armed forces had been missing. So at this time in the US we have a military that excels at moving, shooting and communicating. Looking at the current conflict in the Ukraine has brought to light problems with these same tenets just mentioned in the Russian military. Russian forces pushing into Ukraine struggled to coordinate these same tenets just between Companies and Divisions. Something that the US military puts to the test almost daily. Our men and women learning to shoot, move and communicate and coordinate all of this with other forces and services. These things are ALWAYS struggle anytime you bring a bunch of humans together, but having advanced schools teaching these tenets helps immeasurably.
I live in Reno, Nevada. Fallon, Nevada (which for the record was the very first time I got drunk legally) is only about 1 hour outside Reno by car. Two years ago, we had a jet from Fallon have a major malfunction, and the Reno airport has a series of catch cables for jets. It landed here, was fixed, and returned to service. I assume the pilot hat to change his shorts after the landing.
I heard an anecdote about the development of the F14. a test pilot and former F4 pilot looked over the design and said, "where's the gun?" every time a new fighter comes out, especially with the 5th gen and looming 6th gen fighters coming out, nobody thinks guns or dogfighting are relevant anymore but I doubt positive-ID is going away any time soon, so BVR missiles may not dominate as much as they think. Hell, guys on the ground often can't shoot until they positively ID an enemy combatant. pilots and technology will find a way to avoid a missile, whether countermeasures, outmaneuvering, or politicians who have no idea what they're talking about stick their two-cents in.
They used to do maneuvers through my area they had to quit popping the sound barrier in this rural area because they were breaking too many windows. We got some Wicked Wild air currents right here. Oh and as far as I know other countries started doing the same thing after they've seen the results of America's Top Gun Academy.
This video right here encompasses one sentence in the Top Gun intro text outlining the fighter school origins.
"They Succeeded"
Of course, it also helped that the Phantoms got machine guns installed, otherwise the learned tactics may not have been as effective.
yup… the USAF got the F-4Es with the nose mounted M61 vulcan, and the USN/USMC attached a gatling gun pod onto the centerline pylon…
No, that’s not true. None of the Navy Phantom’s were armed with guns during their victories.
@@cab6273 - didn’t said USN/USMC F-4s had guns or used them during their air-to-air victories, but they did carried the gun pod in several occasions, like ground attack/CAS missions
@@cab6273 Technically, yes, you are correct. However, since the Navy opted not to adopt the nose-cone cannon-equipped F-4E variant (made available 1965/66,) they instead would often mount gun-pods onto their aircraft; these improvised measures often proving unreliable. However, occasionally these mounts did work as intended. How often the gun-pods were used (successfully) after Top Gun learned tactics were implemented is unclear since the improvised mounted gun-pods were not officially sanctioned by the U.S. military command and so may not have been acknowledged for this reason.
So, yes, the USN did not use F-4s that were production equipped with guns, but that doesn't mean they didn't have guns.
At any rate, thanks for the intriguing information, it did shed a good bit of light on the whole "gun/no gun" situation with the Phantoms. 😉
@@hanschristianben505 lol, I wish I had read your comment before I decided to go on a mission trying to find out the accuracy of the replied to comment. I came to the same conclusion.
I can sense the sarcasm in your voice Simon...perhaps I'm watching you too much! Keep it up!
Top Gun is in Fallon, Nevada. One of the Biggest jet bases in the US is located at Lemore, California, in the middle of the Central Valley near Fresno. Neither are near the water but they have a lot of air space to work with.
I'm actually quite surprised you haven't done a video on the mig 15 or 21 Simon! Is that on the to do list by chance? 🙂
Now you need to do one about Tailhook convention in Las Vegas in the late 1980s/early 1990s. Maybe for another one of your channels though....
Nice job as always. Your videos are outstanding!
And the tradition is carried on in 2687 by the Star League Defense Force's Advanced Combat and Maneuvering Skills Project or better known as "The Gunslinger Program."
Ah ha! A fellow Battletech fan! We are out there...
HIIIIIIGHWAYYY TO THE DANNGERZONE!!!!
I feel a need. A need for speee!
That TomCat is still one of the most beautifull jets ever made :D
I live in Fallon, NV. Sucks we’re grossly misrepresented in the “Top Gun” movies.
JC Smith looks like he is also has the US Army's Combat Infantrymans Badge. This guy is truly a killer!!
TLDR: The Air Force added a gun to the F-4. The Navy created top gun. Missiles continued to be the primary weapon and the Navy pilots were much more effective.
I love watching these megaprojects
This is awesome Simon
Fallon Nevada born and raised been around the Top Gun bast my whole life.
Simon seems to be speaking much faster in his recent videos than in his Top Tenz days. And, his hands seem to be flailing about dangerously. I hope that he doesn't hurt any of his coworkers.
The "coworkers" are in the basement, no risk of injury from the flailing :D
Do the Alaska Canada highway project. A 1500 mile highway through tough arctic wilderness completed in a matter of months by the u.s. military
The title is misleading. Top Gun was the US Navy aviation wing's top tier training group, not the US Air Force (which has a separate entity) per se.
I wonder if any of them will beat Neil Armstrong's "skipping an aircraft across the atmosphere"? There's a lot of space out there.
Inducted into a hall of Fame. Wow. That means so much.
Randy Cunningham's "3 Mig's in one mission"...IS 'Top Gun'.....myopinion
ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC VID!!! ✈️🛫👍😉✌️
I don’t think Randy Cunningham attended Top Gun prior to his five victories. He did benefit from the Top Gun graduates/training officers in his squadron, as well as the training “road shows” Top Gun provided to deploying squadrons.
It is too bad that he was an asshole, and a corrupt politician.
Uou should see the animated Macross version of the "Top Gun" intro.
There is another fact that should be shared. When the planes that came out to replace the F-4's, the students, with their arrogance, thought the F-4s would be easy prey. In the first week they learned a variable lesson, it is the pilot, not the plane, that makes the plane dangerous.
Keep up the GREAT WORK! 👍👌💪
I'm surprised there was no mention that the USAF was teaching aerial gunnery and dogfighting long before Top Gun as the USAF Fighter Weapons School (WS) at Nellis AFB and was an influence on the recommendations in the Ault Report. Unlike Top Gun, the USAF WS program is more intense, encompasses a broader understanding of aerial warfare and lasts 6-months compared to Top Gun's 9-13 weeks.
where's the F15 Eagle megaproject? please?!
Thankyou for the content!!
Drove through their test range the other day. I may have opened it up a bit but I knew NHP wasn't going to be running their planes through there.
Phantom F-4: the supersonic brick
Don’t mean to nitpick but you forgot the beach volleyball cross training.
it is important to note that any player without a toned pack of abs must wear a shirt while playing.
I feel the need...
American pilots are the best in the world. It’s all about the pilot.
Everytime Simon sees a script about planes: YES, BRING ME THE VIEWS!
how about doing the just has unique, Aggressor squardron next?
Thanks Simon, another interesting vid
About the only fighter pilots that are possibly better than Top Gun graduates are the Israelis. There was a squadron that came to the US to do aerial combat training (dogfighting) against Marine and Navy pilots flying the F-18. I caught a piece of this when 2 jets broke the no fly zone over San Onofre nuclear power plant. I noticed from a distance as they were approaching that the plane on the six of the other aircraft had only one vertical stabilizer and didn't look like an F-16. When they shot by, I saw the Star of David on it, the delta wing, and realized it was a Mirage. Some interviews with some of our pilots on the news a few days later were interesting. Everyone said the Israelis were the toughest pilots they'd ever flown against, and a couple of them claimed the Israelis were also the craziest pilots they'd ever scene and did things that were supposed to be impossible with the Mirage. The Isrealis said the Navy and Marine pilots were the best they'd ever flown against and were happy they were allies.
So this was the film appreciation vid he talked about in the F14 video. I'm all in for it. 🤣
Can I suggest the English Electric lightning as a megaproject @Simon
When will simon make a megaprojects about making multiple youtube channels?
Dunno who Dan Patterson is or why you couldn't be bothered to double check, but LCmdr. Dan Pedersen was the officer in charge of establishing the School
Surely this sort of thing should have been in place from the start.
Fallow the Birdie 😂😂
Simon, take a moment to look up where Randy "Duke" Cunningham was from 2006 to 2013. :-)
His name is Dan Pedersen, not Dan Patterson
Please do the lcs program from the us navy
For war you must train as you plan to fight, because war is the most ultimate... "come as you are party".
Hello,
what happend to the missed bullits, that missed the target? are there any cassulties be knowen?
On another UA-cam video, a former Navy JAG officer talks about the crimes of Maverick. He said in reality that movie is over the moment Maverick lands and he is met by the MP and court martialed for disobeying the direct order of his CO.
Paper Skies made a video on the Soviet's Top Gun program if you want to watch a supplement video.
OMFG JUST HURRY UP AND MAKE A DEDICATED AVIATION CHANNEL!!!
DON'T TEMPT HIM!!!!
XD
Could you do a mega project about the darkstar?? Would be really cool
Several cases of beer gets you a classroom... the E4 mafia strikes again
Dude, that’s standard comshaw behavior in the military. Horsetrade until you get what you need. Some might even call it an efficient economy !
I love that response from the Pentagon.. instead of whinging at us go and fix it!