Top Gun Academy: The Real Story
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Alison Boesel
Kristin Brown
Genet Garamendi
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Documentary special about the beginnings of Top Gun, the world's premier air-to-air combat training facility. During the Vietnam War when American planes were being out-maneuvered and shot down by small, quick MIGs, Captain Frank Ault, Skipper of the carrier "Coral Sea," wrote up a report that contained a quick, complete solution that could be implemented in time to save lives. Dan Pedersen, who was training rookie pilots at Miramar Naval Air Station in San Diego, used Ault's report to create Top Gun. Within five weeks, pilots discovered previously unknown tactics and maneuvers that would work against a MIG in a combat situation. When these pilots entered the battle, American naval pilots' kill ratio skyrocketed from 2:1 to 21:1, virtually wiping out enemy air resistance.
